Laryea Kingston has taken responsibility for the failure of the Black Starlets to reach the final of the ongoing 2024 WAFU B U17 Cup of Nations.

This was said in a statement he made available on Tuesday afternoon, following his resignation as the Ghana U17 national team’s coach following their 2-1 loss to Burkina Faso in the semifinal match on Saturday.

At his post-match press conference, Kingston tendered his resignation, which was later accepted by the Ghana Football Association. Before the team’s playoff game against Nigeria on Tuesday for third place, the GFA then placed his assistant coaches in control of the group.

“My position was clear then and remains that having failed to reach the final of the tournament, which serves as an automatic qualification to the CAF U17 African Championship and a route to the FIFA World Cup, I believe we fell short of our objectives, and as the leader of the team, I take full responsibility and sincerely apologize for letting down everyone who has been negatively impacted by this,” Laryea’s statement said.

Laryea Kingston has announced his resignation as Ghana U-17 coach, citing the team’s failure to qualify for the U-17 Africa Cup of Nations and, by implication, the World Cup.

Burkina Faso defeated Ghana 2-1 in the semifinals of the WAFU B Championship on Saturday at the University of Ghana Stadium. A victory would have guaranteed their qualification for next year’s competition.

In a post-match press conference, Kingston expressed his displeasure that the squad did not meet their goal and ended the session by announcing his resignation.

According to Kingston, he had performed admirably since his hiring, first as an assistant before becoming head coach, but thought it was time to move on.

“After we came back from Russia, that’s when I decided that whether we win and qualify or not, I’m moving on. After this tournament, I’m resigning as the U-17 coach. I have made that decision already,” he said.

Kingston’s squad had dominated the group stage, defeating Ivory Coast and Benin, but faced a more difficult opponent in Burkina Faso in the semifinals.

Burkina Faso proved too strong, as Kingston acknowledged after the game. He cut an emotional figure as he announced his departure.