Footballers, coaches scared of returning to action amid Coronavirus pandemic

Football activities in Ghana have been suspended since March 2020 when the West African country had few confirmed cases of Coronavirus.

The Government of Ghana recently announced phase two of easing COVID-19 restrictions by giving the green light for some of the social gatherings to resume in full, with the except of recreation activities at the beach, football, etc.

However, it is understood that football activities will be given the go-ahead to return in mid-August, which will be proceeded by the Ghana Premier League in October.

Despite, the assurance from the Ghana Football Association (GFA) all players will be tested for Coronavirus before the resumption of the Ghana Premier League, among other safety protocols, some players and coaches in an interview with BBC Sports Africa have their doubts that Ghana is ready to play football under a safe atmosphere amid Coronavirus pandemic.

“We are not ready for our football to come back." said Tony Lokko, Inter Allies coach.

"I have been communicating with my players and they are also scared, Look at the situation we are all scared of the virus.

"The health materials we are supposed to put in place are not ready and that is the fear of everyone at the moment."

The GFA is yet to outline its plans on how football can return safely and to date has not replied to requests from BBC Sport Africa for a comment on the concerns raised by the clubs.

'This virus is not a joke'

While European leagues have employed wide-ranging health protocols to ensure a safe restart of football - the Premier League alone investing £4m to acquire coronavirus testing kit, with each club testing 40 players and staff twice a week - Ghana does not have the money or capacity for such measures.

“We do not have the necessary facilities to observe the medical precautions that have been laid for regular testing of players and technical teams”, said Lokko

Chief Executive Officer of Ashanti Gold, Emmanuel Frimpong, said he is not ready to risk the health of his players with the virus still growing rapidly in Ghana.

“For now, it is not a good idea - the health of my players is more important," he said.

"Until there is a solution to this virus, I don’t think I would like to my expose my players to the danger. This virus is not a joke.”

However, some players - such as Karela United captain Godfred Agyemang - said they were more optimistic about returning to play - provided they had assurances around health measures.

“The virus is still out there, but if the league authorities can assure us of our safety, I am happy to play," he explained.

"I miss football. It's been a long time."

And for some players, any delay in football's return means a loss of earnings they can ill afford.

Arthur Patrick of Dream FC said the coronavirus impact on football means players like him would rather return despite health and safety concerns.

“It has not been easy - football is a source of livelihood for we Ghanaian players and all of a sudden, coronavirus stopped our income," he said.

"Financially, it’s not been okay for us. Been at home for six months has not been easy.

“I understand it may be a challenge for our Ghanaian football to follow the precaution off the European clubs but I am trusting the authorities to put things in place.”

Ghana has recorded 32,000 confirmed cases of Coronavirus.