Sports
Leaders Karela face fierce task against Aduana
It might be dawning on Karela United that they can only carve out a piece of history in Ghana football by giving their all in battles ahead of them.
So far, they have been tremendously consistent even though they had fallen a few times in the fierce campaign.
The good thing for the westerners is that they had remained impregnably solid at home until that pride was crushed by Asante Kotoko a couple of weeks ago and as they plunge into battle tomorrow against Aduana Stars, they would be bitterly reminded of that home pain.
For the visitors, they would have to work on their away record, having only notched one in their game against Kotoko on match day 10. Sitting seventh on the league log with four points behind leaders Karela, the Dormaa-based side could count on the experience of their lads such as Yahaya Mohammed, Emmanuel Akuoku, Samuel Bio and a few others, to deliver the goods.
But after going blank in his last two games, Karela’s Diawusie Taylor – who tops the goal chart with 10 goals, could use this test to rediscover his scoring form. The likes of Richard Berko, Umar Bashir and Sadiq Alhassan are all players who can pull the strings for the leaders.
Elsewhere in Techiman, it would be a battle of survival for King Faisal who welcome struggling Liberty Professionals to the Nana Ameyaw Park today.
Both sides have been poor in the campaign with three wins from each side and a point difference between 16th-placed Liberty and 17th-positioned King Faisal.
Faisal still stands a chance of avoiding relegation should they snatch a win against Kotoko in their outstanding game. The count on talisman Kwame Peprah, who hold eight goals for his side, will be huge for the ‘Insha Allahu’ boys. Liberty, on the other hand, will eagerly see the return of Brite Andoh.
At the Golden City Park in Berekum tomorrow, Berekum Chelsea will welcome in-form Medeama in a mouth-watering clash. After a poor start, the Tarkwa-based side has now gone unbeaten in their last meetings as they sit fourth with four points behind Karela. Chelsea on the other hand, have picked up one defeat in their last five games and could be aiming to end the fine form of the visitors.
The return of Ahmed Toure for the Mauve and Yellow lads could be deadly for the hosts as the Ivorian import has scored three goals in his first two games for the side.
Their last trip to Accra resulted in a slim 1-0 defeat to Inter Allies, but poor away travelers WAFA SC, will be eager to make amends against Hearts of Oak tomorrow. The Phobians have gradually found the missing link after the departure of Kosta Papic with two wins and a draw in their last games.
With the announcement of Samuel Boadu as new Hearts gaffer, the former Medeama trainer will take charge of his first game and would hope to start on a good note to seal all three points.
Ebusua Dwarfs will travel to face Bechem United on Sunday afternoon at the Bechem Park in a tight contest. With just a point separating eighth-placed Bechem and 10th-placed Dwarfs, the hosts will hope to keep their fine home form against Dwarfs who also have a good away record with wins against Legon Cities, Liberty Professionals and Inter Allies. A tough game it could turn out to be.
At the Nana Ameyaw Park in Techiman, Eleven Wonders are tipped to see off an improved Legon Cities who have gone five games unbeaten. Nevertheless, Bashir Hayford can make it his second away win of the season and could count on new boy Hans Kwofie, who has found the back of the net three times in two games for the Royals.
High-flying Dreams will lock horns with Great Olympics tomorrow at the Theatre of Dreams in Dawu. Both sides are enjoying a good run in the league and would be aiming to keep their consistency. A ferocious game is guaranteed.
BY LINU SIAW NARTEY
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.
