Experienced Ghanaian coach James Kwesi Appiah believes Walid Regragui’s performance at the 2022 World Cup with Morocco is a justification that African coaches can perform when given the chance.
The Atlas Lions of Morocco defied all odds to reach the semifinals of the World Cup in Qatar, becoming the first African to achieve such feat.
Africa had five home-grown coaches at the World Cup for the first time in history.
Cameroon, Ghana, Morocco, Senegal and Tunisia participated in the biggest soccer mundial in the Asian country with a complete local coaches.
However, Appiah, who is currently the head coach of the Sudan national team has expressed that the performance of the Morocco coach at the mundial is a clear indication that African coaches can perform when given the chance.
“When Sudan called on my services, I felt really honoured, as it shows that African teams believe in the expertise of their coaches”
He continued, “During the last World Cup, all CAF teams had African coaches at the helm. They’ve shown the world, in the shape of Walid Regragui and Morocco, that they can perform when given the opportunity. African coaches have proven themselves when they’ve been afforded the chance”
Appiah has been impressive since assuming his role as head coach of Sudan. The Falcons of Jediane currently tops Group B of the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.
The 63-year-old tactician will lead the Sudan national team for the 2025 AFCON qualifiers which commences next month.