{"id":63643,"date":"2024-01-02T17:03:11","date_gmt":"2024-01-02T17:03:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/?p=63643"},"modified":"2024-01-02T16:47:44","modified_gmt":"2024-01-02T16:47:44","slug":"opting-out-of-afcon-2023-solely-based-on-footballing-reasons-baba-rahman","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/opting-out-of-afcon-2023-solely-based-on-footballing-reasons-baba-rahman","title":{"rendered":"Opting out of AFCON 2023 solely based on footballing reasons \u2013 Baba Rahman"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Ghana. <\/strong><\/span>Ghana defender Baba Rahman has addressed speculations surrounding his withdrawal from the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), asserting that his decision was purely based on footballing reasons and not related to previous incidents, including booing in September.<\/b><\/p>\n

Contrary to reports linking his absence to a negative fan reaction, Rahman, who boasts over 50 caps for the Black Stars, explained that influential factors such as past injury battles contributed to his decision. Currently making an impact with PAOK in Greece, the left-back emphasised his commitment to the team and the importance of playing without the burden of recovery or pain.<\/p>\n

Taking to social media, Rahman expressed, \u201cPlaying for my country will always be the highest point of my career, and every time I have been lucky to wear the shirt, I have given my all.\u201d Acknowledging the challenges of injury and recovery, he highlighted the importance of making tough calls for the benefit of both the national team and his career\u2019s longevity.<\/p>\n

Rahman\u2019s decision opens the door for Medeama defender Fatawu Hamidu, who is included in the final and will support Gideon Mensah in the left-back position. Black Stars coach Chris Hughton, announced the squad on Monday, revealing notable absences, including Thomas Partey, Kamaldeen Sulemana, and Tariq Lamptey, all sidelined due to injury.<\/p>\n

As the Black Stars gear up for the tournament starting on January 13, 2024, with an opening match against Cape Verde, Rahman expressed his unwavering support for the team\u2019s quest to secure the AFCON title, a feat they haven\u2019t achieved since 1982.<\/p>\n

Hear me out:<\/p>\n

I just wanted to say that decision to opt out of the AFCON was solely based on footballing reasons and nothing else.<\/p>\n

Playing for my country will always be the highest point of my career and everytime I have been lucky to wear the shirt I have given my all.<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Ghana<\/a> Follow Africa-Press<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Ghana. Ghana defender Baba Rahman has addressed speculations surrounding his withdrawal from the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), asserting that his decision was purely based on footballing reasons and not related to previous incidents, including booing in September. Contrary to reports linking his absence to a negative fan reaction, Rahman, who boasts […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":63642,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,17],"tags":[5092,5096,429],"class_list":["post-63643","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-sport","tag-africa-press","tag-africa-press-ghana","tag-ghana"],"yoast_head":"\nOpting out of AFCON 2023 solely based on footballing reasons \u2013 Baba Rahman - Ghana<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Ghana defender Baba Rahman has addressed speculations surrounding his withdrawal from the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/opting-out-of-afcon-2023-solely-based-on-footballing-reasons-baba-rahman\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Opting out of AFCON 2023 solely based on footballing reasons \u2013 Baba Rahman\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Ghana defender Baba Rahman has addressed speculations surrounding his withdrawal from the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/opting-out-of-afcon-2023-solely-based-on-footballing-reasons-baba-rahman\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Ghana\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-01-02T17:03:11+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/ghana\/sites\/18\/2024\/01\/sm_1704201069.176262.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1280\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"720\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/opting-out-of-afcon-2023-solely-based-on-footballing-reasons-baba-rahman#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/opting-out-of-afcon-2023-solely-based-on-footballing-reasons-baba-rahman\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"Opting out of AFCON 2023 solely based on footballing reasons \u2013 Baba Rahman\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-01-02T17:03:11+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/opting-out-of-afcon-2023-solely-based-on-footballing-reasons-baba-rahman\"},\"wordCount\":330,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/opting-out-of-afcon-2023-solely-based-on-footballing-reasons-baba-rahman#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/ghana\/sites\/18\/2024\/01\/sm_1704201069.176262.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Africa Press\",\"Africa Press-Ghana\",\"ghana\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"sport\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/opting-out-of-afcon-2023-solely-based-on-footballing-reasons-baba-rahman#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/opting-out-of-afcon-2023-solely-based-on-footballing-reasons-baba-rahman\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/ghana\/all-news\/opting-out-of-afcon-2023-solely-based-on-footballing-reasons-baba-rahman\",\"name\":\"Opting out of AFCON 2023 solely based on footballing reasons \u2013 Baba Rahman - 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