Black Satellites head coach Desmond Ofei has acknowledged the difficulty in retaining forward Jerry Afriyie for the remainder of their matches at the U-20 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).
Afriyie, who featured in Ghana’s opening two matches against DR Congo and Senegal, has returned to his club, CD Lugo, in accordance with a prior agreement between the Spanish side and the Ghana Football Association (GFA).
Speaking ahead of Ghana’s decisive final group match against the Central African Republic, Coach Ofei admitted that Afriyie’s absence is a blow to the squad but remains optimistic about his potential return later in the tournament.
“Jerry [Afriyie] is an incredible talent. Everybody knows what he brings to the team on and off the pitch,” he told the GFA Media Team. “He’s a true leader.”
He added, “We knew it was going to be very difficult to get Jerry at the beginning of the tournament, but we were lucky to have him for two games.”
Coach Ofei confirmed that the forward’s short involvement was pre-arranged, and the technical team will make every effort to bring him back at a critical stage.
“Everybody knew he was going to play two games. After that, we would try and get him back at the right time to help the team, and hopefully, we won’t miss him for too long.
“We expect him to join us very soon, but we will fight for him and make him proud in his absence,” he added.
Afriyie made a notable impact during his brief spell, providing the assist for the winning goal against Senegal—an effort that helped Ghana climb to second place in Group C, behind DR Congo.
Ghana takes on the Central African Republic at 15:00 GMT on Thursday as they seek to seal a spot in the quarterfinals.
