Ghana appoint Charles 'CK' Akonnor as new Black Stars coach

Charles 'CK' Akonnor's first competitive games in charge of Ghana will be 2022 World Cup qualifiers in March

The Ghana Football Association (GFA) has appointed Charles 'CK' Akonnor as its new national team coach to replace Kwesi Appiah.

Akonnor is a former captain of Ghana and spent much of his playing career in Germany with stints at Fortuna Koln and Wolfsburg among others.

Most recently he was part of Appiah's coaching staff with the Black Stars.

He has also taken charge of clubs in Ghana, including the country's two best-supported teams Hearts of Oak and most recently Asante Kotoko.

His first competitive games will be 2022 World Cup qualifiers in March, the draw for the group stages will be on 21 January.

David Duncan, who has also coached both Kotoko and Hearts as well as Ghana's under-23 and under-17 sides, has been appointed as Akonnor's assistant.

The GFA has also appointed coaches for the other national teams under its control with Mercy Tagoe returning to her job in charge of the senior national women's team, the Black Queens.

Earlier in January the GFA removed all of its national team coaches, at all levels of the game, including Appiah and all his assistants, which included Appiah's contract not being renewed.

The association said the drastic move was "in line with the vision" of its new administration to allow it to evaluate the situation.