Sports
Crunch Berekum Chelsea test for Kotoko
Asante Kotoko will be eager to clinch a second straight victory at the Berekum Golden City Park this afternoon when they face Berekum Chelsea after sinking AshantiGold at the Baba Yara Sports Stadium in four-goal thriller on match day 12.
Berekum Chelsea have gone two games without a win, playing goalless against Great Olympics and a 1-1 deadlock with Medeama.
Having tasted sweet victory over Aduana Stars at Dormaa for the first time and crashing poor performing Ashgold, the Porcupine Warriors will bring a lot of attention to themselves as they dash for a possible third consecutive win on match day 13.
The Blues of Berekum will have to prove to their fierce critics beyond every reasonable doubt that the departure of their former captain, Stephen Amankona to the Kotoko camp, would have no effect on them – by securing a famous massive victory today.
With 26 points from 11 games, Asante Kotoko and their gaffer, Dr Prosper Narteh Ogum, will look further to stretch the lead – even with a game at hand against their sworn rivals, Hearts.
At the Tarkwa Akoon Park on Sunday, Medeama will welcome Olympics to a fierce tie that would have a lot at stake because of the slender points difference between the two teams.
Hearts make a return to the Accra Sports Stadium tomorrow to wrangle it out with Eleven Wonders after their away fixture against Medeama at the Akoon Park.
The Phobians will attempt to go for the maximum points in order play catch-up with Kotoko ahead of their outstanding game on February 20.
Wounded Ashgold will face bottom-placed Elmina Sharks, who are yet to win a game after a seven-straight losing streak.
At Sogakope on Sunday, West African Football Academy (WAFA) will lock horns with eighth-placed Dreams FC. Dreams went away to pick a point at Tamale, which makes them the favourites going into this game.
Second-placed Aduana Stars will host Accra Lions at the Nana Agyeman Badu I Park in Dormaa. Technically, Aduana will start the game as favourites though Accra Lions can cause a surprise, looking at their previous two matches; drawing away with WAFA and winning on the road against Legon Cities.
The Aliu Mahama Sports Stadium in Tamale will host newbies Real Tamale United (RTU) and Bibiani Gold Stars in top cracker. With RTU losing marksman, David Abagna to assignment with the Black Stars in Cameroon, the Tamale lads will have to prove their doubters that their team play is not built on one man.
Gold Stars are coming into this game hungrier after losing to Hearts at Bibiani in their previous fixture.
Action continues on Monday when Legon Cities host Bechem United at the Accra Sports Stadium.
As of press time yesterday at the Baba Yara Sports Stadium, Karela United were battling it out with King Faisal.
By Emmanuel Asante
Attention will be at the Golden City Park in Berekum tomorrow as Hearts of Oak lock horns with Berekum Chelsea FC in a Ghana Premier League Matchday 6 game that promises an electrifying atmosphere.
Lying sixth on the league table with two wins and three draws, the Phobians visit a ground that has been favourable to them in recent times. In their last three visits to the Golden City Park, Hearts have amassed seven out of nine points, putting them in strong contention to win.
Head Coach Mas-Ud Didi Dramani says, “The team is making progress in its tactical identity despite the lack of goals, and this is something we are working on ahead of this game.”
Hearts will come face-to-face with former coach Samuel Boadu, whose side lies a distant 13th on the league table with a win and a draw from four games. Coach Boadu is yet to celebrate a victory over the Phobians since joining the Berekum lads and would hope this fixture marks a turnaround.
Ninth-placed Vision FC would trek to the Nana Fosu Gyeabour Park in Bechem to play Bechem United, while new boys Hohoe United host Aduana FC at the Hohoe Sports Stadium.
Returnees Swedru All Blacks will welcome Basake Holy Stars to the Swedru Sports Stadium, with defending league champions Bibiani Gold Stars staying put at their backyard, the Dun’s Park, to welcome second-placed Heart of Lions FC on Monday.
Today at the TnA Stadium in Tarkwa, Medeama SC will clash with Samartex FC in a Western derby. Other games scheduled for today would see Eleven Wonders FC host Karela United at the Swedru Sports Stadium, while Dreams FC face Nations FC at the Tuba Astro Turf.
By Raymond Ackumey
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Ghana coach Otto Addo may not command the kind of fear and respect like Pep Guardiola, Jose Mourinho, Carlo Ancelotti, Luis Enrique and others in the modern game, but in his small corner, he is gradually climbing the ladder to greatness in Ghana, Africa and the world at large.
The aforementioned coaches attained greatness with club sides and, therefore, open an argument over whether one is not comparing apples to oranges. But no matter how one looks at it, they are all coaches harbouring similar ambitions to attain greatness in their fields.
Otto Addo is one of the young and upcoming coaches holding a lot of promise and was getting experience with his association with Borussia Dortmund in Germany until his path was directed by a Ghana call.
Although he was born in Germany, Otto Addo’s association with Ghana football dates back to 1999, spanning a period of about seven years; commencing with a 5–0 rout of Eritrea on February 28. He gained international prominence when he joined the squad for the 2000 African Cup of Nations. He featured as a midfielder in the team for the 2006 FIFA World Cup.
But like it’s often said, a prophet is not recognised in his own home and his efforts partially went unnoticed. He’ll go into the annals as one of the Black Stars coaches to have been fairly or otherwise criticised not just by ‘football people’ but fans who doubted him.
His sack has been discussed at various platforms by people whose knowledge and tactical acumen about the game remains questionable. Ghana’s Minister for Sports and Recreation, Mr Kofi Adams, at one point openly stated his doubts over Otto Addo’s ability to actually deliver.
No coach would feel secured in such turbulent times, but coach Otto Addo kept his calm and composure. On the corridors of his employers, however, the Ghana Football Association (GFA) president, Kurt Okraku, openly rallied support for him, though a few ‘doubting Thomases’ still questioned his credentials.
That painted a picture of a people that forget easily and are quick to crucify. In a brief moment of adversity, Ghanaians forgot how Otto Addo was brought in to pluck qualification for the Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup from the jaws of the Super Eagles of Nigeria with a solitary goal over two legs.
The upshot of that feat was not one any Nigerian would want to remember. The scenes after the match were awfully chaotic, as fans vented their anger on facilities at the stadium. Back in Ghana, it was partying all night and day.
Otto Addo was labeled the football magician. He achieved something no Ghanaian coach had ever accomplished; a feat which Ghana with her all-time best teams could not attain. That was the climax to which Otto Addo took Ghana football, generating calls to start believing in the Ghanaian coach.
Following that to the World Cup proper was another story altogether. It was, or may have been, our poorest show at any of the four World Cup appearances. And just as it was stipulated in his contract, he bowed out after the Qatar World Cup to mind his Borussia Dortmund business with peace.
But as fate would have it, nature found a way to renew his romance with Ghana football after an unconvincing start to the America, Canada and Mexico dream World Cup under special advisor turned coach, Chris Hughton.
Ghana started the qualifiers on a winning note but not a convincing performance. It was saved by an Inaki Williams goal scored on the sixth minute of additional time against Madagascar at the Baba Yara Sports Stadium. The Black Stars then slumped to a 1-0 defeat at the Stade de Moroni to Comoros to heighten calls for a new technical direction.
Then stepped in Otto Addo when Ghana occupied the fourth position in Group I with three points but with the countries in the group evenly matched.
By Andrew Nortey
