FIX ATTRACTIVE SALARIES FOR PLAYERS (PAGE 31, OCT 24)

A former Vice Chairman of the Ghana Football Association (GFA), Nana Yaw Owusu, has suggested to the GFA to collaborate with Premier League club managers to fix attractive salaries for local players.
He pointed out that fixing a minimum salary for players would not only reduce their movements to other Premier league clubs, but would also motivate them to offer their best to improve the standard of play.
“The GFA should find a way of deciding with the clubs what should be the minimum salary for players. Their salary should be attractive enough to prevent those yearning to go outside at all cost to play for foreign clubs to stay a bit longer and play in the country. This will make the league more exciting to entice fans into the stadium” he explained.
Speaking to the Daily Graphic on how to improve standards in the Premier league, Nana Yaw Owusu noted, “the standard of play counts in soccer in enticing fans into the stadium, but as key players get attractive offers from foreign clubs and leave the country midway when the Premier league starts, or is about to start, it reduces the interest that fans have in attending matches. It is therefore important for club management to pay their players well and instil a sense of nationalism in them.”
He said, “once players are adequately motivated and provided with the requisite remuneration and incentives, it would balance their desire to go outside, and rather play in the Glo Premier league.”
He also suggested to the GFA to discourage club officials from protesting against what he described as unqualified players.
Explaining, he said, prior to the starting of the league, all clubs advertised their registered players and a dead line was given for club management to query those deemed to be unqualified to register and play in the Premier league.
“What it meant was that, if there was any problem on any of the registered players, clubs would raise objection. As it were , it appears there was no objection regarding unqualified players because no team raised any objection on any of them.