Ghana Brings Back Carlos Queiroz as Head Coach Just Two Months After His Exit

Two months. That's all it took for Carlos Queiroz to return to a bench he had walked away from after a World Cup qualifying exit. The Ghana Football Association (GFA) announced that the Portuguese coach is coming back as head coach of the Black Stars, just weeks after announcing his departure.

The news comes as a surprise, though maybe not so much once you know the backstory. Queiroz held fresh talks with the GFA and with the country's Ministry of Youth and Sports, and those meetings produced an agreement for another contract in charge of the team. In a statement released Wednesday night, the federation explained the reasoning behind the decision.

"We believe Queiroz's vast international experience, technical expertise and knowledge of the Black Stars position him strongly to lead the team in this new chapter," the GFA said in its official statement.

Queiroz's resume, at 73 years old, doesn't need much of an introduction. He has coached Portugal, Colombia, Iran and Egypt at the national team level, and also had a stint on the Real Madrid bench at club level. That background is exactly what the Ghanaian federation is now pointing to in justifying his return.

So why did he leave in the first place? The coach stepped down after a 1-0 loss to Colombia in the first knockout round of the World Cup, a result that ended Ghana's run in the round of 16. In his farewell remarks, Queiroz was candid about how he felt.

There was no "complete sporting satisfaction," but the team gave "respect and credibility to the Black Stars."Carlos Queiroz

The Context of His Original Arrival

It's worth remembering how all this started. Ghana was coming off a stretch of four straight losses when Queiroz was appointed in April to replace Otto Addo, who had been sacked. Under his guidance, the team drew with England in the World Cup group stage and advanced as one of the best third-place finishers, despite falling to Croatia in the final match of that stage.

Now, with that recent run still fresh in memory, the federation has decided to bet again on the same man who, just weeks ago, said goodbye to the job. The lingering question is whether this second stint will deliver the "complete sporting satisfaction" that Queiroz himself admitted was missing the first time around. Time, and the Black Stars' upcoming matches, will tell whether this quick reunion between coach and federation turns out to be the right call.