1. Hearts of Oak lose against new boys, Holy Stars
Former Hearts of Oak forward, Charles Taylor on AP Sports said, ” Ouattara is not a good coach. I doubt he will take the club to the promised land. After matchday three, if the club doesn’t see any improvement, they have to sack him.
“Aboubakar Ouattara will be the first coach to be sacked,” Charles Taylor added. The Ivorian tactician has had enough time to prepare the team and hence must do better than what transpired at the Accra Sports Stadium n Sunday against the newly promoted side, Holy Stars. It’s quiet surprising to see a newly promoted side beating Phobia in the opening day of the season.
Ouattara in the pre-season said, “Hearts of Oak’s dream for the upcoming season is to avoid relegation. The club has started it very early and will have to fight hard to survive because there’s no spirit in their performance. Losing against Holy Stars has killed the spirit and confidence of the fans. It’s up to Ouattara and his men to bring th fans back to life.
2. Samba Ndongani leads Asante Kotoko
After sacking more than 20 players, Asante Kotoko looked like a very new team in terms of sqaud. Guinean goalkeeper Mohammed Camara, Esmat Abdulhamid, Joseph Ablor, Emmanuel Antwi, Lord Amoah and Albert Amoah all made their debut for Asante Kotoko. Who among the current almost new team was going to be trusted to lead the Porcupine Warriors?
Many fans have debated over it over the last 3 weeks. Head coach Prosper Ogum chose the Congolese center back Ndongani Gilbani as the man to replace Richmond Lamptey. The former Rahimo defender has instantly becomes fans favorite and must keep up his good performance to help the club achieve their aim. Ndongani was super against Karela in Kotoko’s 1-0 win and he’s tiped to be confirmed officially as the new skipper for Fabulous.
3. Duns Park can push Bibiani Gold Stars all the way
Teams that win much points at home stands the chance of finishing in the top 4 in the Ghana Premier League. Bibiani Gold Stars since Frimpong Manso took over from Michael Osei in 2023 has won 10 games out of the 11 played including wins over Samartex, Dreams, Medeama and Chelsea. They comenced the new season with a great performance against Legon Cities.
The Royals tested Bibiani Gold Stars but Duns Park stood up and favoured Frimpong Manso once again. Good performances at home can push Bibiani Gold Stars all the way into the top 4. The marriage between the two is near perfect.
4. TNA Park finally got the GPL fever
The beautiful and attractive TNA Park tasted how it feels to host a Ghana Premier League. Under the brighter flood lights in Tarkwa, Medeama, the winners of the 2022-23 GPL got their season underway with a tricky fixture against Accra Lions, last season’s runner up. Ibrahim Tanko’s Accra Lions is full of teenagers but they play like they have been around for 5 years together.
They combine aggression, pace, passing and tactical discipline to face their opponents. Medeama was made to work hard for the win. Bernardinho Tetteh scored a 55th minute penalty to become the first player to score at the TNA Park in the Ghana Premier League history.
5. Samartex misses key players as it clearly showed against Dreams
One of the two fixtures that opened the season ended in a disappointing goalless draw. Dreams FC and Samartex promised to be a cagey affair but did not produce a single goal. On the part of Dreams, star trio; Agyenim Mensah Boateng, John Antwi and Abdul Aziz Issah have all departed the club.
Emmanuel Keyekeh and Dauda Seidu have also departed the club with Evans Osei Wusu still out injured for the defending champions, Samartex. These players absence is a big blow to the two clubs and the league in general. Samartex failed to break down Dreams because they lacked Keyekeh, Dauda and Osei Wusu’s quality. Can they defend the title without these guys?
6. GPL broadcasting on TV is below the modern day standard
Startimes were heavily criticed for poor broadcasting of the Ghana Premier League even though they were million miles ahead of what we witnessed on our televisions on Week 1. It’s incredible to see Ghana’s TV stations broadcasting the league in such an embarrassing manner.
The biggest news ahead of the new season was the availability of th games on some of the local TV stations for free as it’s one major way to capture the attention of Ghanaians. It was never good watching Karela host Kotoko at the Naa Sheriga Sports Complex in Nalerigu.
Everything about the coverage was too poor and people will lose interest if nothing is done about it. It won’t even last until week 5 that many will abandon watching the league on television entirely because they will easily have access to watch EPL, Laliga, Bundesliga and Serie A as proper human beings appreciate beauty.
