The wise saying that great minds think alike. In my case It is surprising that my little football mind has agreed perfectly with the great football mind of Sepp Blatter, the FIFA President. Some time in the latter part of last year I wrote a little piece in the BBC football web site in which I suggested that the Africa Cup of Nations should be rescheduled to the summer and also be staged only in the odd years so that the tournament does not clash with the FIFA World Cup and the Olympic Games. What I cannot understand is why the football politicians of Africa should find it difficult to understand and appreciate the realities of the global football world. We are all aware that at this time and age, almost all the superstars of world football ply their trade in the European leagues. That includes African superstars like Eto'o, Drogba, Essien, Adebayor, Kanoute, Martins, Kanu and Muntari. These are players who draw fat salaries from their clubs and also invest a lot in the development of the game back in their home countries. Yet, the president of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) and his followers do not find it necessary to shift the Africa Cup competition to a period that will be convenient to all parties - the players, the clubs and the African countries. The main reason that is advanced for this intransigent stance is the so-called African weather, particularly the rainy season. In a continent where most workers can use a slight drizzle as an excuse for not reporting for work at the expense of productivity, this is not surprising. However, for any ardent follower of world football, it is naive to use rainfall as an excuse for fixing a football activity. The whole world watched some of the football matches played in South Korea and Japan in 2002 in rain. Even the recent women's and Under 17 World Cup tournaments did not escape the heavy rains in that part of the world. Is the CAF President, Alhaji Issa Hayatou, suggesting that Africa should never stage the world cup, since that always takes place in summer? If so, then why did he not tell Sepp Blatter not to support Africa's bid for the world cup 2010, a move which he (Blatter) personally initiated and supported to the end? It is surprising that former superstars, some of who supported South Africa's World Cup bid and also played professional football under all forms of inclement weather, including snow flakes, are also supportive of this negative stance. In any case, if the CAF president took time to study the domestic football calendar of member countries, he would realise that most of them do play football in the rainy season. To argue that the Africa Cup of Nations cannot be staged in the summer because of rains is to suggest that Wimbledon should be shifted away from the British summer. The CAF president also feels that shifting the Africa Cup of Nations to summer will kill the game on the Continent, yet he does not tell us how the game will be killed. In my opinion, this will ultimately be the case if the competition is not shifted to the summer. For this year's competition in Ghana, it is estimated that over one million people will visit the country for the competition. I believe it could have been double or triple that number if the competition were held in summer. Football has for a long time become the number one global sport and generated a well-developed soccer tourism trade. The demand for that trade is mostly in the European and American continents where most tourists prefer to travel in the summer. Most followers of African superstars are also likely to follow their idols to the Nations' Cup in the off season. In any case, as a Manchester United supporter (since 1958), I would have preferred to see my hero, Sir Alex Fergusson, himself in the stands alongside other great managers like Arsene Wenger, Rafael Menitez, Frank Raijkaard and others, instead of only their agents. Football politicians serve the interest of football and a mark of that service is in taking into account the wishes and opinions of footballers, the clubs and their supporters. It is strange that our African football politicians are behaving as if the views of these major stakeholders do not matter. In fact, the attitude of ''we think for you and you obey" is unfortunate. It mirrors the behaviour of some African political leaders and their cronies who will send their "dogs" into the streets to kill and maim the very people the are supposed to be serving, in order to hang on to power. No one can doubt the contributions of European clubs to the development of football on the continent and that contribution has helped a lot to make the Africa Cup of Nations tournament more competitive and attractive to the global football fraternity. The intransigent stance of our football politicians will ultimately obliterate the important role of European clubs in the development of African football talent rather than promote it. Also, having the tournament in the middle of the European season affects the performance of key players in the national teams, since they are caught in two minds and also play cautiously to avoid injuries. My fellow Alhaji needs to think again or come up with more tangible reasons for the stance that he and his administration have taken. Let me take this opportunity to congratulate the President, John Agyekum Kufuor (an enthusiastic football follower and administrator), and the New Patriotic Party (NPP) government on the wonderful work done in constructing four stadiums in the country for this tournament. They will remain an indelible part of this government's legacy. I am particularly happy and proud that one of them is in my hometown, Tamale, where the people really love their football. They say oil lubricates everything. Yet, this feat has been achieved in the face of escalating world prices for crude oil which has affected the prices of everything in the world and is even driving the world's biggest economy, USA into a recession. I remember in 1974 I wrote an article in the erstwhile Sporting News on the need for stadiums in the country for the development of football in particular and sports in general. It has taken more than 30 years for a caring and listening government to take this elephant step to do that. There is no doubt that winning the Africa Cup will be the icing on the cake of the numerous achievements of this responsible and development-oriented government in spite of the harsh global economic conditions. The Black Stars, I say well done for a good start but they and their coach must be the first to understand that their opening performance will not be enough to win the trophy. In the absence of Stephen Appiah, I expect Michael Essien and Sulley Muntari to stamp their authority on the remaining matches. I do hope that the coach will also do something about the back four. The team could have been punished several times by a better opposition. I expect the coach to re-establish the reliable central defensive pair of Mensah and Illiasu while searching for more competent fullbacks in his squad. Striking remains a huge problem and I do hope that he will pair the very impressive Abeyie (who was surprisingly substituted) with the aggressive Agogo while reinstating the swift and hard working Haminu Draman at the left side of midfield. Also, Kingston never delivered any of the set pieces properly, and he should either work on it quickly or leave that responsibility to either Sulley Muntari or Michael Essien. There is greater opposition to come and I do hope that the coach would work out the right strategies to ensure that the stars triumph in all their matches. Good luck. Source: Prof. Wayo Seini/Daily Graphic