After close to two hours interview on Happy FM, an Accra-based Radio station, Black Stars midfielder, Sulley Muntari, managed to shrug off the 'bad boy image' that had hanged on his reputation for all this while.
Since the 2004 Olympics in Athens 2004, the Inter Milan player has been the centre of controversies in the Black Stars' camp, which has gone a long way to paint him as the black sheep of the team.
The misinterpretation and misrepresentation of issues regarding the third Ghanaian Champions League winner after Abedi Pele and Sammy Osei Kuffuor, has painted him black in the eyes of Ghanaians.
However, after 'selling' himself in the interview and managing to clear most of the bad boy image against him, many have come to the realization that the former Portsmouth and Udinese player is not bad after all.
Speaking to why he has been the subject matter in almost all the bad news that emanate from the Black Stars' camp, Muntari said he has always been misrepresented, and his failure to come out publicly to debunk such stories make people consider it as the truth.
'All the bad things you hear about me are false, I don't react when I hear such stories because I know they are false, so people consider it as the truth', he said, and added that 'I have kept mute all these while, thinking that the truth will come out at a future date, but the more I keep quiet, the more people believe that what they hear about me is the truth.'
His latest alleged wayward image was displayed when he returned from South Africa 2010 World Cup on a chatered flight, ahead of the team. But Muntari responded that he obtained permission which was granted, and that he was on the flight with some other players of the team, but he was the only one who stood accused.
Before that incident, rumour was all around the team's camp in South Africa that there was a rift between him and Coach Milovan Rajevac.
But Muntari rubbished the allegation. He admitted expressing anger in a particular instance after the match involving the Stars and Australia, which ended in a 1-1 stalemate, because he was frustrated the team did not win, but his anger was directed at nobody in particular.
Sulley mentioned that he kicked at objects on his way to the changing room, a situation he said happens to most players.
'I was angry because we failed to win our game against Australia when they were down to 10 players for most part of the game. We always console ourselves with words like it will be better next time, but I always say why don't we do it when the chance presents itself?' Sulley said.
He also debunked the allegation that he took his girlfriend, Menaye Donkor, to the team's changing room after the Ghana-Benin game in the World Cup qualifiers at the Baba Yara stadium in Kumasi.
He retorted. 'How can I do that when we have a goal to accomplish –that is winning the game, after all I will have all the time under the sun to be with her, so why should I do such a thing?'
Commenting on his mother's utterances, he explained that she (Hajia Kande), like every mother would react when her child's name is being dragged in the mud.
Sulley expressed gross discontent about Radio stations which continue to air his mother's voice as sound bite on their sports programmes, and has appealed to them to refrain from that.
He walked out of the studios after the comprehensive interview conducted by Mr. Charles Osei Asibey, to interact with the many soccer fans who thronged the premises of Happy FM.
He is one of Ghana's most decorated football stars, having won three major titles with Italian giants Inter Milan, as well as the FA Cup with Portsmouth.
source: Ghanaian Chronicle
