Gladson Awako blames coaching for Hearts of Oak's poor form

Hearts of Oak skipper Gladson Awako says the inconsistency in the club's coaching role played a huge factor in their abysmal performance in the 2022/23 Ghana Premier League.

The Phobians are currently without a trainer, having first parted ways with Samuel Boadu in September 2022 before showing the exit door to Serbian trainer Slavko Matic who left his role in March 2023.

Meanwhile, David Ocloo who was an assistant to Slavko and later named as the interim was also released from his role in July 2023, after guiding Hearts of Oak to finish 10th in the just-ended season.

According to the former U-20 World Cup winner, the team had too many coaches which affected the team negatively because all these coaches had their own philosophies and need time for the players to adapt.  

“Too many changes in coaching impacted negatively on our performance last season. We started with Samuel Boadu, then later Matic who didn't last long, followed by David Ocloo. All these coaches had different philosophies which warranted time for players to adapt and this affected our performance”, he told Akoma FM.

Gladson Awako mentioned that the team saw improvement under Matic but needed time to make the team better.

“We were improving under Matic, it was just unfortunate that he left, David Ocloo tried his best but because the pressure was too much it couldn't work. Coaches need time, you can't appoint them and expect magic or instant results, so I feel the changes on the technical side and injuries affected our performance. Yes, the departure of Slavko Matic really affected us and it didn't help at all. Before Matic, we were at the 12th position but we moved to the 3rd position with him in charge and now see where we ended the season" he added.

Gladson Awako joined Heats of Oak in the 2021/22 season from Accra Great Olympics on a three-year deal, where he featured in 26 games and scored one goal, aiding the side to win the 2022 MTN FA Cup and President’s Cup in 2022.

However, Heart of Oak is expected to announce a new gaffer before the 2023/24 season commences in September, with former Kotoko and WAFA trainer Prosper Ogum being among the rumored names for the vacant role.

LSN/KPE