4th final as head coach?

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Former national coach Joachim Löw has been without a coaching position for five years. According to a report from Ghana, the 66-year-old could be set to make a short-term comeback and lead Germany’s latest friendly opponents, Ghana, to the next World Cup. This would be Löw’s fourth final appearance on the bench – although speculation should be viewed with caution.

The (Site notre bureau spécialisé) portal « Ghanasoccernet », well established in Ghana, reports that Löw and the Black Stars are currently in negotiations over a short-term job, which comes into effect immediately and initially only until the summer tournament in the United States, Mexico and Canada. It relies on “several” own sources. The association’s offer of a monthly salary of 150,000 euros was also launched in the room.

Ghana have fired coach Otto Addo following the 1-2 friendly defeat against the DFB side last Tuesday. In the previous test, the team had already lost 1:5 against Austria. At the World Cup, the Black Stars will face England, Croatia and Panama in Group L, considered one of the strongest constellations in the preliminary round.

Coach search in Ghana: what role does Winfried Schäfer play?

Although information from Africa should be viewed with caution, the Ghanaian federation is pressed for time ahead of the tournament. An important role in the search for a successor to Addo is assigned to technical director Winfried Schäfer. The 75-year-old’s relationship with Löw is considered respectful; both have a past at Karlsruher SC and VfB Stuttgart, where Schäfer succeeded Löw as head coach in 1998. The possibility that Schäfer himself could return to the coaching bench for the World Cup has also been part of the public debate in recent days.

Schäfer won the African Cup with Cameroon in 2002 and coached the “Indomitable Lions” at the World Cup in South Korea that same year. At that time, his team had been eliminated in the preliminary round in a group with Germany (0:2), Saudi Arabia (1:0) and Ireland (1:1).

In Ghana, expectations are traditionally high. Addo has been the head coach of the Black Stars for two years, with eight wins, five draws and nine defeats in 22 matches. Ghana also missed qualifying for the Africa Cup of Nations this winter. In 2022, the former Bundesliga professional had already taken care of the team as interim coach after serving as an assistant. Addo was also absent at the World Cup in Qatar when Ghana were eliminated in the group stage.