Bechem United have acquired the services of Swedish coach Erol Bekir to bolster the club’s football development.
The 41-year-old UEFA Pro License holder, who arrived in Ghana on Friday night, will concentrate on youth development.
Bekir will only advise with the technical direction of the club during Ghana Premier League matches.
President of Bechem United Kingsley Owusu Achau said: “Bechem United have decided to emphasize youth development as we see it to be the future of our club and Ghana football. The next Abedi Peles, Tony Yeboahs, Asamoah Gyans and Christian Atsus must be discovered today.
“We know there are many 16 to 19 year old footballers in the country who do not have the opportunity to develop their talent.
“Now Bechem United will go around the country, pick these amazing talents and hand them over to our new youth development coach. Erol’s task will be to build them into future superstars and that is our plan.”
Bekir, known during his playing career as Bekirovski, is excited about his new role with Bechem United.
“My parents are originally Turkish and they grew up in Macedonia plus I am Swedish. So I have many influences running through me. As a professional football player, I played in many countries in Europe and I speak four languages,” he told friends of Bechem United at an intimate dinner to welcome him into the country.
“So wherever I go, I find it very homely. Today we can get excited and relax and even dance but we get down to work immediately to start development.”
The arrival of Bekir is part of an ambitious plan by Bechem United to become the best talent development club in the country.
Already, the ‘Hunters’ as Bechem is affectionately called are embarking on a planned exposure trip to Turkey with its junior side for fifteen days.
While in Turkey, the team has arranged three matches with Turkish Premier League and second tier clubs in an effort to improve the quality of their players.
“Trips to Europe are not new to us,” President Achau said. “We used to do it many times even while we were not yet a premier league team.
We stopped for a while but now we are starting again. Turkey, Spain, Italy and Sweden are going to be regular on our calendar.
“Every year from now, we will undertake at least two European tours. We are serious about football and the way the game should be developed. And I am confident the Bechem way will win in the long run.”