Duncan takes over

Former Accra Hearts of Oak Coach, David Duncan, has taken charge of the technical affairs of Kumasi Asante Kotoko, after agreeing to a pre-contract with defending league champions, but is expected to put pen to paper next week to seal the two-year renewable deal.

Full details of the contract were not made available to the Graphic Sports, but representatives of both parties say they are happy with the deal.

To prepare the grounds for a smooth takeover, Coach Duncan travelled with the team yesterday to Algeria to observe his new charges play against Moludia Club d’El Eulma of Algeria in the CAF Champion League 1/16th stage first leg on Saturday.

The Public Relations Manager of Kotoko, Kwaku Ahenkorah, told the Graphic Sports the trip was to enable Coach Duncan study the Algerians to fully assess his players in order to strategise for the second leg in two weeks’ time at the Baba Yara Stadium in Kumasi.

Coach Duncan’s arrival at Kotoko has been stalled by management delay in settling  former coach, Mas-Ud Didi Dramani’s severance pay.

As part of Duncan’s condition for accepting the job, he had insisted that as a matter of principle, his predecessor be properly settled and respected.

Subsequently, the Kotoko management has effectively closed the chapter on Dramani, the man who led the club to back-to-back Premiership titles and an MTN FA Cup trophy last season, by paying Dramani more than GH¢54,000