Accra, Ghana — Assistant coach of Accra Hearts of Oak, Gazale Abdulai, has spoken out following sanctions imposed on him by the Ghana Football Association (GFA), describing aspects of the disciplinary decision as unfair.
Abdulai was recently handed an additional three-match suspension and fined GHS 5,000 by the GFA Disciplinary Committee after being found guilty of misconduct during a Ghana Premier League match involving Medeama SC.
Reacting to the ruling in an interview with GhanaSportsPage.com, Abdulai questioned the basis of the punishment, arguing that the sanctions amounted to a cumulative seven-match ban for a single incident.
“They said I behaved unsportingly and was given four matches, but later they added three more matches. I’m not a lawyer, but I know what they did was wrong. You can’t ban me for seven matches after one offence,” he said.
The Hearts of Oak assistant coach further disputed the findings against him, insisting he did not assault the ball retriever as alleged.
“All I’m saying is that if you use the phrase ‘unsporting behaviour,’ it means I didn’t conduct myself properly, but another person should still be safe. I didn’t hit the boy, but they coached him to speak against me,” Abdulai claimed whilst talking to Ghanasportspage.com.
He added that he had already served the initial four-match suspension before the additional three-game ban and fine were imposed.
The GFA has maintained that the latest sanctions follow its disciplinary procedures, with the suspension taking immediate effect and the fine required to be paid within fourteen days of notification.
