Ashgold to deepen Liberty’s woes?

High-flying coach of Ashantigold Sporting Club, Charles Kwabla Akonnor, is confident his side will keep to their success story in the ongoing Ghana Premier League when they play against Liberty Professionals today in a midweek fixture at the Carl Reindorf Park at Dansoman.

The Soccer Miners, who have seen a massive transformation, both administrative and technical, ahead of the season, started on a high note conquering almost every opponent that has crossed their path, including local giants Kumasi Asante Kotoko and Accra Hearts of Oak, who were lashed 2-0 and 3-1, respectively.

After five matches, Ashgold are currently perched comfortably at the summit with 13 points after recording four wins and a draw, four points shy of fellow campaigners, International Allies.

“We are going with a lot of courage and our mission is to win and even though we know it will not be easy, we will do our best to win. It is too early to talk about the league title, but like every other club, we have our eyes on the trophy so we are taking each game at a time,” Coach Akonnor said in an interview with the Graphic Sports yesterday.

According to the former Black Stars skipper, his confidence stems from the exceptional abilities exhibited by his players so far, hoping they will replicate the same feat they chalked up against Kotoko in their Week Five fixture at Obuasi last Sunday.

“As a coach it is my duty to analyse and acknowledge the efforts of my players and to know what is best for the team, if not you will find yourself in a difficult situation. I am building a team around our goalie, George Owu, striker Shafiu Mumuni, James Akaminko and our two centre-backs, who always try to pull the whole team along.

For him, the coming on board of John Christensen as technical director has contributed greatly to the success of the team, saying: Christensen’s coming has been helpful because we share a lot of ideas and arrive at the best decision, but as a coach I have my own philosophy, knowing that the capacity to learn is a gift so I am always learning.”

At the Baba Yara Stadium, Kotoko will welcome Cape Coast Ebusua Dwarfs in a cagey encounter as Kotoko seek to dust off their shocking 2-0 loss to Ashgold last Sunday with a vital home win.

Kotoko’s earlier enthusiasm to recapture the title seems to be wavering and, having lost two of their last five matches already, Coach Paa Kwesi Fabin and his charges will need to take the bull by the horn in order to return to winning ways.

In a similar episode, beleaguered Accra Hearts of Oak, reeling from a 3-0 loss to Berekum Chelsea last Sunday, will have no choice than to go all out when they play Wa All Stars at the Cape Coast Sports Stadium today.

At the Nduom Sports Stadium at Elmina, Elmina Sharks will play host to International Allies in a dicey duel which will test Allies’ resolve to maintain the second position they currently occupy.

At Bechem, Bechem United lock horns with Dawu-based Dreams FC in a close contest, while WAFA welcome Medeama to Sogakope in another tough encounter.

Per the StarTimes schedule, the match between Karela United and Berekum Chelsea will be played tomorrow at the Baba Yara Stadium. The match kicks off at 3pm.