Standard of GPL has not fallen - Coach JE Sarpong

Veteran coach JE Sarpong has divulged that the quality and eminence of the Ghana Premier League is not as low as perceived.

Some Ghanaians over the years have said that their sudden love for foreign football to the neglect of the local league competitions is because the local leagues are not competitive.

But according to the former Hearts of Oak and Asante Kotoko trainer he has been impressed with the standard of play in the just-ended season.

The 2020/21 Ghana Premier League campaign came to an end over the weekend as Hearts of Oak clinch the covetous trophy at the expense of their sworn rivals, Asante Kotoko.

In an interview with Sylvester Ntim of Bryt FM, the experienced coach indicated haven observed the talents and abilities being portrayed by the teams involved in the league, he believes the standard is not near to the ground but the perception of Ghanaians makes it so.

“Our standard is not low. The only thing that can be said to below is the situation demand.” He said.

He admitted some clubs at times performs below expectation but said it is a norm in every league across the world.

“It’s like being in school, in some year, a particular batch can perform extremely well while the following year other groups can score zero percent. That doesn’t mean the standard in the group is low”. he added.

He insisted it is a generational change in terms of performance and also depends on the people one has coached to play.

The former Okwahu United coach added the player's output on the field and the demanding effect of the league regarding the player’s strength and ability are the things that have to be concentrated on.