Kotoko’s faith in Duncan

The General Manager of Kumasi Asante Kotoko, Samuel Opoku Nti, has rallied support for embattled Coach David Duncan, believing that he is competent enough to turn around the club’s fortunes after Sunday’s CAF Champions League setback.

Making his first public statement after the club’s predicament, Opoku Nti, affectionately called Lord Zico, passionately urged the porcupine family to desist from the blame game and forge ahead to ensure a successful defence of the Premier League and MTN FA Cup titles.

Speaking on MultiTv’s Fire for Fire programme last Wednesday, the Kotoko legend said despite the 1-2 defeat to MC El Eulma of Algeria in Kumasi last Sunday, he was fully convinced that Coach Duncan had what it took to turn things around for Kotoko.

“I believe Coach Duncan has what it takes to turn things around for Kotoko,” he stressed.

He apologised to the teeming supporters of the club and appealed to them to put Sunday’s setback behind them and rather throw their weight behind the coach in his effort to bring Kotoko back on track. 

According to him the Kotoko board did everything in its power to motivate the team to ensure qualification but things did not go the way they expected. 

He categorically denied blaming the painful defeat on players’ lifestyle as was widely rumoured after the match.

He thought those rumours might perhaps be the reaction of some disgruntled Kotoko fans who could not stand the shocking home defeat.

He said painful as it was, Sunday’s surprise defeat by the Algerians was one of those things in football.

 “Though we are out of Africa we still have the league and FA Cup trophies to defend so we still need their support,” Opoku Nti noted.

It will be recalled that the players of Kotoko had to be escorted from the Baba Yara Stadium last Sunday under a heavy security guard from irate fans after bowing out of the CAF Champions League following a 1-2 home loss to MC El Eulma after a goalless first leg.