Sports
Clubs chase top spot in GPL
The battle for the top spot on this season’s Ghana Premier League continues unabated as very cagey Week Nine fixtures this weekend is expected to witness some massive shake-up at the summit.
Though Ashantigold has so far displayed some consistency and currently on top of the table, just leapfrogging Bechem United on goal difference, other teams including Karela, WAFA, Hearts of Oak and Kumasi Asante Kotoko are chasing the pack and steadily climbing their way to the top.
The development, presents a very interesting weekend ahead with some mouthwatering fixtures; top on the list – Hearts taking on Eleven Wonders tomorrow at the Accra Sports Stadium.
Fifth-placed Hearts would be hoping to bounce back to winning ways after drawing one all with Elmina Sharks in their last encounter at home.
A win against arguably the team of the season so far, Eleven Wonders, will place Hearts on 15 points, same as the current league leaders which would be hugely fancied by the Phobian fraternity.
Wonders, however, have been a huge mountain to climb this season, mesmerising opponents with some good football and pulling some surprises which Hearts should be wary of.
They would fancy all three points which could also catapult them to top six position and possibly top four, going into the next round of games.
Another cracker on Sunday would be at Sogakope where fourth-placed WAFA face off with sixth-placed Kotoko with just a point separating the two sides.
Known for their great individual talents and dominance at home, WAFA would go all out in an attempt to maintain their top four position after being tipped as one of the favourites to win this season’s league.
WAFA, also known as giant killers, would be hoping to stop their visitors who are gradually gaining confidence which saw them defeat Liberty Professionals 2-0 in their last game.
The Porcupine Warriors have also been presented a good opportunity to enter top four as they would secure 15 points with a win away from home against WAFA.
With their new Brazilian inspiration – Fabio Gama fast becoming fans’ favourite just after a majestic first game which saw him provide two assists, Kotoko would be beaming with confidence ahead of the encounter.
Fans are already eager to see their new darling boy in action and another impressive performance would definitely give Kotoko something to smile about at Sogakope.
The weekend’s actions would, however, begin today with Liberty Professionals taking on Ebusua Dwarfs at the Carl Reindorf Park with the home side desperate for a win.
Liberty have been blowing hot and cold this season but a win today would be a huge boost to the team and desperate fans in Dansoman as they look forward to a win after their embarrassing defeat to Kotoko in their previous game.
On Sunday also, second-placed Bechem United would square off with Dreams FC at Bechem in another interesting fixture with the home side hoping to maintain their position.
Dreams, however, would need to upset their host to push themselves away from their 14th position and avoid slipping into the relegation zone.
Legon Cities would also be looking to another win after securing their first win of the season in their last encounter against WAFA as they travel to face Aduana Stars.
Though they would have wished to have an ‘easier’ opponent to clinch another win, Legon Cities must, nevertheless, put up an extraordinary performance to torment Aduana at home.
Aduana, on the other hand, would not easily give away three points especially at their own backyard and the quest to get above their current ninth position hanging around their necks.
Elsewhere, league leaders Ashantigold would take on Medeama at the Len Clay Sports Stadium as the home side face a challenge that could make them slip at the summit.
Medeama, after a slow start of the season, are beginning to find their form and managed to beat Aduana Stars 2-1 in the last game. A win against Ashantigold would be a huge step in their ongoing revival.
In other games, bottom-placed King Faisal would be looking forward to changing their fortunes for the better as they face Elmina Sharks while third-placed Karela would also clash with struggling Berekum Chelsea in another mouthwatering fixture.
It promises to be an action-packed weekend of football as teams continue to battle for glory in this year’s league season.
BY MICHAEL D. ABAYATEYE
Ghana Premier League side, Nations FC, may have suffered the drop in the just ended Premier League and are destined for a fresh campaign in the Division One League (DOL).
But they stand a huge chance of remaining in the elite stage of the game as they face Dreams FC in an epic MTN FA Cup final at the University of Ghana Sports Stadium tomorrow at 6pm.
Dreams FC have been there before; going ahead to taste the honours in the 2022-23 season after defeating King Faisal.
Coming from a season that saw them crawl from the initial stages of the league to finish on a respectable fourth position, they come in as strong favourites to double their honours in the nation’s second top football competition.
History favours them in this regard. On their first final, they conquered and based on this, connoisseurs of the game have tipped them to make it ‘two-on-two.’
But Nations FC have been empowered by the age-old adage that “He that is down need fear no fall.”
Nothing can be worse than suffering relegation and exiting the limelight as far as exposure is concerned.
But the FA offers a decent opportunity to make them stay relevant.
Conquering Dreams FC would not just make them MTN FA Cup champions. It will grant them the prestigious slot to represent Ghana in the Confederation of African Football (CAF) second tier club competition- the Confederations Cup.
With Dreams FC harbouring the same ambitions, the stage is, therefore, set for a final that promises to be explosive and uncompromising.
The situation of Nations FC might have come to many as a surprise, considering their promising start to the season, with their defence especially, marshalled by Black Stars defender, Razak Simpson, and colleague central defender, Raymond Grippman, earning a lot of reviews.
But despite the struggles they endured at certain times of their campaign, the MTN FA Cup always provided slices of good fortunes as they managed to navigate their way to the final.
Road to the top
Nations FC began the MTN FA Cup competition on a promising note, enjoying some good runs with a win over DOL Zone Two side, Ebony FC, in the Round of 64.
That landed them in a tricky encounter with another high-flying Zone Two candidate, AshantiGold SC, a side that eventually won the title from the zone to qualify to the Premier League, but escaped.
At the round of 16 stage, they encountered and defeated Ghana Premier League side, Swedru All Blacks, 2-1 to gain progression to the quarter final stage where they edged Berekum Chelsea on penalties.
A dicey semi-final awaited them against Aduana FC in Swedru. It was a game Nations was given little chance to escape considering Aduana FC’s form but once again, they conquered to secure a final berth.
In total, the Abrankese-based club have scored eight goals and conceded only two throughout the competition, making them one of the strongest defensive sides in the tournament.
For Dreams FC, they defeated Division One League Zone Three side, Semper Fi, 2-1 to progress to the next stage of the competition where they accounted for Division Two side, Asanska FC, 2-0.
That handed them a quarterfinal berth where they faced Inter Allies and drew one all before winning 4-3 on penalties.
The happiest moment in their success story was a 3-2 semi-final win over GPL winners, Medeama SC.
With that feat, Dreams have been touted as potential winners as the match comes at a time the Nations FC side may be psychologically down over the weight of the challenge they face in the next season.
However, the competition has gain notoriety for not following any form guide and outcomes mostly coming as major surprises.
In this regard, Dreams may be tipped as favourite candidates but though Nations are wounded, the stakes could revive an insatiable desire to apply the brakes to turn the dreams of Dreams FC into a nightmare.
Support
The support from MTN Ghana has no doubt improved competition among the clubs with the attractive incentive packages for participating clubs.
MTN Ghana, which is celebrating 30 years of operations in Ghana, formally became headline sponsors of the Ghana FA Cup in the 2010/2011 football season after the competition had returned from an eight-year hiatus.
The first edition under MTN sponsorship was won by Nania FC, who defeated Asante Kotoko 1–0 in the final at the Accra Sports Stadium.
Since then, the competition has been known as the MTN FA Cup, with MTN renewing its sponsorship several times — in 2013, 2017, 2020 and again for subsequent seasons.
By Andrew Nortey
The Black Stars have opened camp in Cardiff ahead of next week’s international friendly against Wales.
The team is being taken through training drills by head coach Carlos Queiroz.
Thirteen players trained at Dragon Park on Monday, with others expected to join the squad on Tuesday.
They include Ernest Nuamah, Brandon Thomas-Asante, Jordan Ayew, Caleb Yirenkyi, Abdul Fatawu Issahaku, Elisha Owusu, Gideon Mensah, Marvin Senaya, Jerome Opoku, Benjamin Asare, Joseph Anang, Solomon Agbasi, and Alidu Seidu.
The Black Stars will train in Cardiff for one week ahead of the international friendly against Wales on Tuesday, June 2, before traveling to the United States of America.
Coach Carlos Queiroz will use the period to assess his players before naming his final squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup in Canada, Mexico, and the United States.
Twenty-six players will be submitted to FIFA on Monday, June 1, as mandated by the competition regulations.
The Black Stars are drawn in Group L with Panama, England, and Croatia. They will open their World Cup campaign against Panama on June 17 in Toronto before facing England and Croatia in their other group matches.
