Mohammed Salisu: Southampton star set to honour Black Stars call-up

The 23-year-old has been courted by the Ghana Football Association (GFA) for many months now, but all attempts have so far failed.

The centre-back, however, met with GFA boss Kurt Okraku during the latter’s visit to the UK earlier in May, with discussions over his international future held.

The Ghana News Agency (GNA) reports that Salisu has had a change of heart and will soon make himself available to the Black Stars.

The report, however, indicates that he is unlikely to feature for Ghana in the upcoming 2023 AFCON qualifiers in June.

Salisu is currently one of the best young players in Europe, having made an impressive start to the season at Southampton.

He has taken the Premier League by storm after starring in matches against Manchester United, Arsenal, Manchester City and recently Liverpool.

However, all attempts to get him to play for the Black Stars have proven futile so far, with the center-back rejecting a call-up to feature at the 2021 AFCON.

Salisu also turned down an invitation to feature in Ghana’s two-legged Qatar 2022 World Cup playoff against Nigeria, although the Black Stars went on to qualify for the tournament on away goals.

However, during his recent encounter with the GFA President, the defender pointed to football authorities in Ghana as the reason for his reluctance to feature for the Black Stars.

“If you don’t play, am I the one who is going to play?” Kurt Okraku jokingly said in a video that has gone viral on social media.

In response, Salisu said many players would like to play for Ghana but was quick to add that football authorities are the problem.

“The problem is, everything is done with you [referring to football authorities]. Without you, things don’t work. Hope you understand my point,” Salisu said.

“As for players, they abound. But the issue [which makes players shy away from call-ups] lies with you [authorities],” the Southampton rearguard added.