Yaw Preko: Why I chose Ifeanyi Ubah
Former Hearts of Oak assistant coach, Yaw Preko, says he chose Nigerian side, FC Ifeanyi Ubah, above Ebusua Dwarfs in order to seek fresh challenges abroad.
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“I’m very adventurous so I decided to seek a fresh challenge outside instead of Dwarfs and the offer too is good,” an elated Preko told the Graphic Sports yesterday.
Preko, who suddenly quit his mother club Hearts as a caretaker coach last week, was on the brink of signing a two-year deal with Cape Coast Mysterious Dwarfs, finally opted for a reunion with former Hearts’ Japanase trainer, Kenichi Yatsuhashi, on a one-year deal with the Nigerian side.
The deal actually underlined earlier speculations which linked Preko’s resignation from Hearts to a new romance with his new-found mentor who had also signed a one-year contract with FC Ifeanyi Ubah as the new head coach earlier on.
Preko, who leaves the country next week to begin his foreign contract, confirmed opening negotiations with Dwarfs officials towards a possible move but explained that the discussion was subject to the outcome of the Nigerian deal which was indeed the first option.
“It is true I spoke with Dwarfs officials but it was 50-50 because I also told them about the offer from the Nigerian club,” he revealed.
According to Preko he cherishes Dwarfs so much following his long-standing relationship with the club’s top officials such as Nana Sam Brew-Butler and Nana Aidoo, as well as his Black Starlets teammates, including Willie Brown and Kofi Mbeah, and, therefore, indicated his willingness to join them if the Nigerian deal fell through.
“It’s not like I swerved them to sign for the Nigerian club. I told them there was a deal I was still considering and that I could only consider their offer if that one fails to materialise. So they know,” he explained further.
The former Hearts and Black Stars winger sounded philosophical as he referred to the new move as a fresh page in his young coaching career while crediting Hearts for being the launching pad.
“It is like history repeating itself. As a player I played just one season for Hearts and got a contract to play in Europe.
“And as a coach too I’ve got a foreign contract after serving Hearts for just a season,” Preko noted.
He described Hearts as a club which is still dear to his heart and, therefore, hoped to return to the club in future to complete an unfinished business, wishing the Phobians well in the upcoming season.
“Once a Phobian, always a Phobian. So I hope to return to Hearts one day to help it win more trophies to make the fans happy,” he assured.
Preko also stressed that his new appointment would not conflict with his role as the assistant coach of the national U-20 team, the Black Satellites, in anyway.