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Opinions of Saturday, 29 October 2016

Columnist: Sheikh Tophic Sienu

Hearts of Oak keep sinking as Togbe keeps sleeping

The arrival of Odotei has moved the club from good to worse. The arrival of Odotei has moved the club from good to worse.

The state of Accra Hearts of Oak keeps deteriorating day by day while the majority shareholder and board chairman Togbe Afede XIV keeps sleeping as if all is well.

The state of the club has moved from bad to worse but Togbe looks on unconcerned as if he has been spiritually blinded to agree to whatever the management puts across.

The club has been chasing the Ghana Premier League trophy for eight years now and still counting but there is no hope that that dream can be realised any moment soon.

Year in year out, the club keeps repeating the same mistakes over and over again when it come to hiring and firing coaches, recruiting and releasing players as well as the day to day management of the team such as players' salaries, bonuses, etc.

The state of Accra Hearts of Oak keeps deteriorating day by day while the majority shareholder and board chairman Togbe Afede XIV keeps sleeping as if all is well.

The state of the club has moved from bad to worse but Togbe looks on unconcerned as if he has been spiritually blinded to agree to whatever the management puts across.

The club has been chasing the Ghana Premier League trophy for eight years now and still counting but there is no hope that that dream can be realised any moment soon.

Year in year out, the club keeps repeating the same mistakes over and over again when it come to hiring and firing coaches, recruiting and releasing players as well as the day to day management of the team such as players' salaries, bonuses, etc.

The resignation of Yaw Preko as the acting head coach of the club is a major indicator for Togbe to accept that all is not well all the club.

I know Togbe employed the services of Odotei Sowah in order to transform the fortunes of the club and win trophies for the club as well as fetching financial returns for the club.

A famous adage in Hausa says 'Upon seeing a sick goat, you don't need to raise the tail before you know it is sick.' Similarly, Odotei's had a false start and should have alerted the top hierarchy that he is not the right man for the job.

He, Odotei, did everything possible to ensure Kenichi would leave the club and he left.

Even while Kenichi was the Head coach, Odotei was preaching everywhere on radio that Sergio had a better CV than Kenichi. A manager, to me, does not do that. You put the heads of your employees together when you do that.

The very day Sergio was brought in Ghana, he granted an interview to Happy FM that he will transform the team's play to #tiki_taka but when the side started playing poorly with no pattern, Sergio in a post match interview said he never said he will play #tiki_taka. That very day should have been the end for Sergio. Such a liar does not handle the Glorious club in Ghana. Sad!

Then with three matches to end the season, Yaw Preko was asked to take charge. He did, unequivocally.

Meanwhile at that time he was owed two months salaries while Sergio was not owed a dime. Is it not insulting? As of now, Yaw Preko is owed three months but Sergio is owed nothing. How? Is it not disrespect? How can we do such to our own and expect God to help the club. God will not even mind us.

This has been the same way the club has been recruiting players and the result is that at the end of every season, they will release 13 players to go free either because their contracts have ended or the players do not want to extend or for non-performance. So what at all will compel a club's management to be recruiting players without the concern of the head coach? Perhaps some enjoy kickbacks.

I am only happy that Yaw Preko has resigned to protect his integrity and can boldly say that Nassamu Yakubu is also on the verge of tendering in his resignation.

That is the way to go. Let the Odotei Sowah-led management, the board and Sergio Traguil take the team. We will watch from afar.