Brighton and Hove Albion manager Roberto De Zerbi has expressed his disapproval of Ghana coach Chris Hughton for selecting Tariq Lamptey in his 55-man provisional squad.
Despite Lamptey currently recovering from an injury, he has been chosen to join the Black Stars squad for the 34th edition of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Ivory Coast.
During a press conference on Wednesday, ahead of their Premier League match against Crystal Palace, De Zerbi stated that Lamptey is injured and will not be able to participate in the tournament. He further criticized Hughton’s decision to include the injured right-back in his provisional squad.
“He (Tariq Lamptey) is not available to play with us, so how will he play with the Ghana national team?” the Italian manager said.
“It seems that the Ghana national team coach does not follow the Premier League,” he added.
As previously published by Tru News Report, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) has received a 55-man provisional list from the Head Coach of Ghana’s Black Stars, Chris Hughton, ahead of the 2023 African Cup of Nations, scheduled to kick off in January.
The list published on the website of CAF includes 11 local-based players plying their trade with various teams in the Ghana Premier League.
Ahead of the tournament, which will kick off from January 13 to February 11, 2024, in Ivory Coast, participating teams had until December 14, 2023, to submit a provisional list of 55 players to CAF.
The list is supposed to be updated to not more than 27 players by January 3, 2023.
