Ghana Football Association (GFA) has said it will wait for an official communication from FIFA before deciding to use defender Jonathan Mensah for Ghana when the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers start next month.
The Evian defender was handed a worldwide ban by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) last week sparking fears that he won’t be able to play for the Black Stars when the qualifiers start.
Some media however maintained that Mensah would not be available to play for his country until he serves his suspension which will end on 30 August.
However, the world governing body FIFA has been reported to have come out that Mensah can play for the Black Stars in the qualifiers during the suspension.
Despite this revelation, the GFA says it wants to be sure of the ruling from FIFA before a decision will be taken whether to use the defender for the qualifier.
“We have written to FIFA about the ruling to seek clarification whether he can play for Ghana without any problems,” Ghana FA spokesman Ibrahim Sannie Daara told Oman FM.
“We have read in the media that he can play in the qualifiers but as a federation we must have concrete evidence from FIFA before we play him so that we are on the safe side.
“We won’t make such mistakes by replying only on media reports. We must consult FIFA which we have done and we are hoping for the best outcome.”
Citing Article 17 par. 3 of the Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players, a FIFA spokesman explained that Mensah will be eligible to play for Ghana in the qualifiers.
“He can play for Ghana in World Cup qualifiers and any other matches that are not a final competition of an international tournament,” the spokesman added.
This means Mensah will be able to play in the 2017 Nations Cup qualifier against Mauritius in June.
He was banned for breaking his contract with Italian side Udinese to sign for French side Evian.
*Ghanaian midfielder, Francis Obeng has been arrested in a massive match fixing scandal that has engulfed his Italian third tier side Santarcangelo.
The 29-year-old is among the more than 50 people were arrested in the southern town of Catanzaro over their suspected involvement in the Italian match fixing scandal, reports ghanasoccernet.com.
It is unclear the specific allegations levelled against the Tema-born powerful mid-fielder but the report has received wide coverage in the Italian press.
As well as one senior police officer, those detained include players and directors from around 30 clubs from Italy’s third and fourth divisions.
Catanzaro prosecutors said they had uncovered an alleged network between club presidents, coaches, players, and some management members.
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