Kurt Okraku took my name out of U-23 Squad - Former Ghana Youth International Najeeb Yakubu alleges

A former Ghana youth international has made explosive allegations against the President of the Ghana Football Association (GFA), Kurt Okraku. Najeeb Yakubu, who now plays for the Niger national team, claims that Mr Okraku was behind his exclusion from the Ghana U23 squad that travelled to Japan for friendlies in 2021.

In an interview with Muftawu Nabila Abdulai on 'Prime Take' on JoyNews, Najeeb alleged that Mr Okraku had a personal vendetta against him, stemming from his refusal to join Dreams FC, a club formerly chaired by Mr Okraku.

“I think it’s the GFA President, Kurt [Okraku], who took out my name from the U23 squad that travelled to Japan in 2021 for the friendlies. I think he has a personal problem with me,” he said.

“When I was in the U17, he [Kurt Okraku] wanted me to join his team, Dreams FC. Unfortunately, I couldn’t join his team [and he took it personally],'' he added.

A representative from Dreams FC has however, disputed claims made by Najeeb Yakubu, stating that the club never attempted to recruit him.

According to JoySports, the official revealed that the only interaction between the club and Najeeb occurred when he was playing in Ukraine, and the conversation was focused on potentially calling him up to the Ghana national team, the Black Stars, due to their need for a right-back at the time.

The allegations have sparked a heated debate in Ghanaian football circles, with many calling for an investigation into the matter. The GFA has yet to respond to the allegations.

Najeeb's decision to switch allegiance to Niger has also raised eyebrows, particularly after he played against Ghana in the 2025 AFCON qualifiers where Niger won 2-1 to go third on the qualifying table behind Sudan and Angola. Ghana's poor performance in the qualifiers has led to widespread criticism of the team's management and the GFA.

Source: Lead News Online