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Karela threaten Olympics’ unbeaten run
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Accra Great Olympics’ unbeaten run in the four-week-old betPawa Ghana Premier League will come under threat tomorrow when they visit the Aliu Mahama Sports Stadium in Tamale to face Karela United.
Great Olympics is one of the four teams yet to lose a game in the league.
But Karela, after holding Kotoko, are poised to add another traditional club to their victims they pluck points from, as they set out to compete fiercely for this season’s title.
In the last three seasons, Karela United has managed a single home win against the ‘Dade Boys’ with the other two ending even.
Those games were played at the Crosby Awuah Memorial Park but having moved their home games to the Aliu Mahama Stadium, Coach Ibrahim Tanko Shaibu believes the Olympics near dominance over his side would end at the new home.
“We’ll ‘finish’ them. There is no way Olympics will survive. We will beat them,” he stated after his side held Asante Kotoko to a 1-1 draw in Kumasi on Sunday.
With a win, draw, and a loss in their last three games, Coach Shaibu is bent on picking his second win of the season.
Still basking in the glory of holding Kotoko away, Olympics may just have to be strong and determined if they hope to maintain their unbeaten run.
Olympics have lacked consistency in their games, failing to win when the odds seem to be in their favour; a situation their followers have not been happy with.
After failing to kick-start their season on a winning note against Tano Bofoakwa, a game that ended goalless at the Accra Sports Stadium and seeing the visitors enjoying greater parts of the exchanges, Olympics were destined to fall in their second game against Heart of Lions at Sogakope.
But at their wondrous best, they held their own against the Premier League returnees to pick a point.
Against a Goldstars side that had upset Kotoko the week before, the Wonder Club earned a lone goal victory to record five points from a possible nine to place at the top ranks of the table.
It would surely be a cracker between two clubs trying to build up the points to avoid the usual relegation dog-fight with Karela as slight favourites but Olympics have the tendency to perform when the odds are against them.
Just as they secured points at Sogakope against the Lions, Oly can spring another surprise against Karela United.
Today at the Nana Fosu Gyeabour Park in Bechem, Bechem United will take on Medeama SC with the aim of picking their second win in the four-week-old league.
Bechem United has won two of their last three home games against the Tarkwa lads – a 4-0 and 1-0 wins in the 2022 and 2023 seasons.
Playing at home again, the agenda would be to make it a hat-trick of victories against the high-flying Medeama side that have booked a place in the group stages of the on-going CAF Champions League competition.
Medeama lie bottom of the log with a point from two games, having been excused from their last game, due to their involvement in Africa.
Head Coach Evans Adotey says having achieved what they set out for in Africa, their focus would now shift to the league and make sure they climb up the log, beginning today.
At the Accra Sports Stadium tomorrow, Accra Hearts of Oak welcome Dreams FC with the Phobian fans clamouring for nothing but a win for their beloved club.
Hearts have recorded just a win in three match days, an outcome that has angered the fans.
They have not hidden their indignation from Coach Martin Koopman who now faces a difficult task to end the club’s poor run.
Koopman may have given the Phobians a false hope after scoring the highest number of goals during pre-season.
With the new club culture of playing recovery games, Hearts have scored over 40 goals in non-competitive matches but strangely, they have lost those scoring boots in the league and would need to rediscover it.
If not, the high-flying Dreams FC side that just qualified for the group stage of the CAF Confederation Cup may be a thorn in their flesh as they engage them in the presence of their home fans.
In other games, Nsoatreman FC will clash with FC Samartex at the Nana Koramansah Sports Complex in Nsoatre.
Nations FC would play Legom Cities at the Dr Kwame Kyei Sports Complex in what promises to be an exciting encounter following the determination of the debutant to stay above water in their premier season.
Coming from a defeat in the hands of Great Olympics in Accra, Bibiani Goldstars would return to the Dun’s Park to welcome Real Tamale United in what they see as a do-or-die affair.
The WAFA Park in Sogakope will witness the clash of the returnee clubs Hearts of Lions and Bofoakwa Tano.
On Monday, Accra Lions will be seeking to protect their unbeaten run when they host Kumasi Asante Kotoko at the Accra Sports Stadium.
By Raymond Ackumey
Tuesday, September 29, 2026 would go into the annals of Ghana football as one of the darkest days for the Black Stars.
In an AFCON 2027 qualifier against The Gambia, the Black Stars did not only break the hearts of the fans, but conceded a defeat that left followers with sleepless nights.
Coming from a Matchday 1 defeat to the Elephants of La Cote d’Ivoire in Bouake, the outcome of the second game against The Gambia was one that was non-negotiable.
It had the ability to spark a revival to contend for one of the slots for the next AFCON showpiece.
The Gambia is a formidable side but definitely, not one to have frustrated Ghanaians to watch in pain and awe the Black Stars lose a game from a winning position.
That is a possibility in the game of football but when the stakes are high in such cases, it becomes unacceptable to the fans.
And grievously has Carlos Queiroz answered the massive call for his resignation.
At his post-match press conference, he made it clear that bowing out was the easiest decision but insisted that would not solve the myriad problems facing the Black Stars.
For the coach to be fired two days after that declaration raises a lot of concerns as he seem to be aware of existing problems the FA may even not know.
Unfortunately, coaches over the years have always been sacrificial lambs in situations of this nature but when he talks about particular problems affecting the team, his sack leaves much to be desired.
That aside, it is important to also take another look at the country’s pool of players, both local and foreign based.
Some of us have been advocates for forming the Black Stars around the ever-present local players who may lack the skill, finesse and flamboyance believed to give the foreign based players the edge over their local counterparts.
The locals, however, compensate that with their commitment and dedication.
Sadly, it appears this consistent call have fallen on deaf ears and no one wants to give any attention to that.
If the fear is that results would be poor, then that would be no excuse again following outcomes of the Stars in their last two games.
From what was witnessed in Bouake and Accra, one can confidently boast that there isn’t much difference between the foreign based players and the locals.
If there is any, it would probably be the treatment given to the two sets of players.
The call on the FA now is to give major consideration to the local players. Any coach that sees no good in the local players must have no business handling the national team.
That does not also shut the door on the ‘foreigners’. We witnessed how the early 90s teams were beautifully blended to have a formidable team.
It is time the FA goes back to the basics. With the locals, there can be more camps, leading to improved cohesion. Any foreign based player invited must settle into the team quickly and make a difference. That is the only way to rescue the Black Stars from its free fall.
By Andrew Nortey
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Manchester City Football Club has lodged a comprehensive appeal against the opinion of the Premier League Commission in relation to its long-running disciplinary case.
In a statement on Thursday, October 1, 2026, the Club confirmed that the appeal was filed at 7pm.
“The Club’s firm position is that, on multiple grounds, the opinion contains clear material errors, of law, principle and fact and is unsafe,” the statement said.
City maintained its innocence, stressing that a comprehensive body of irrefutable evidence exists in support of all its positions relating to the case.
“We will continue to respect due process and are necessarily restricted in what we can say further until all proceedings are complete,” the Club added.
The appeal sets the stage for the next phase of the legal battle between the Premier League champions and the league over alleged breaches of financial rules, which the club has consistently denied.
By Edem Mensah-Tsotorme
