Ghana legend Tony Yeboah says football in the country will never develop if national team call-ups are always handed to the highest bidder.
According to him, talented players continue to get snubbed because they are not backed by wealthy sponsors.
Yeboah played for the Black Stars for over a decade and was part of the team that reached the final of the 1992 AFCON.
Speaking to some journalists at the Yegola Hotel in Kumasi, he noted that the way the national teams are run must change.
“If your father is not wealthy, you cannot play for the national team: but we do not use this philosophy to develop football,” the former Leeds United striker said, as quoted by Ghanasoccernet.
“They have to pay money before they are recognized, so how can our football develop? And the challenge is that all the talented players have been denied access to the national teams and they are missing in action.
“The call-up for money should stop because a lot of players are not getting a fair opportunity to play for Ghana.”
Yeboah’s comments come on the back of Ghana’s disappointing group-stage exit at the 2021 AFCON in Cameroon.
The Black Stars endured a poor run in the tournament following a humiliating 3-2 defeat to Comoros last Tuesday.
The result saw Ghana finish at the bottom of Group C after failing to win any of their three group matches.
Also, this is the first time since 2006 that the Black Stars have been eliminated from the AFCON in the group stages.
