From Van Basten to the dugout: Prosper Ogum on the dream that never died

Black Starlets head coach Dr Prosper Narteh Ogum has opened up about the childhood dream that first set him on a football path — and the family pressure that forced him to abandon it.

Speaking on the Ghana Football Association (GFA) podcast with Patrick Akoto, the 2022 Ghana Premier League-winning coach revealed that his love for the game began as a striker with big ambitions.

"I think it is all about passion. It’s about the drive to do what makes me happy. As a child, I wanted to be a footballer. I was a centre forward," Ogum said.

His performances on the pitch earned him lofty nicknames. "In secondary school, I was called Van Basten. At college, I was called Ronaldo. I wanted to be a professional footballer, but family pressure, especially from my mum, made me stop and focus on my education."

Despite stepping away from the professional dream, Ogum continued playing at an amateur level while studying. It was a former tutor at Berekum Training College who suggested he channel his football knowledge into coaching.

That advice would prove transformative. Ogum combined his academic career — he is a trained teacher and lecturer at the University of Cape Coast in the Department of Health, Physical Education and Recreation — with a steady rise through the coaching ranks. He holds a CAF Licence A badge.

His coaching journey began with Elmina Sharks, guiding them to Division One League qualification in 2013. After a brief spell with Ebusua Dwarfs, he returned to education to pursue a PhD, then took charge of Karela United and later WAFA SC, where he led the Academy side to a third-place finish in the 2020/21 season.

The breakthrough came at Asante Kotoko. In the 2021–22 campaign, Ogum won the Ghana Premier League title, was named Coach of the Season, and received the Ghana Football Awards Men's Coach of the Year in 2022.

Now at the helm of the Black Starlets, Ogum has already achieved what many thought unlikely: ending Ghana's eight-year absence from the U-17 Africa Cup of Nations. He also serves as the Ghana Football Association's Head of Coach Education.

For a boy who was once told to put away his boots, the journey from Van Basten to the dugout has been long — but it is far from finished.

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