We Will Not Be Complacent In Final Four Games – Preko

Assistant coach Yaw Preko has said Accra Hearts of Oak will not be complacent going into the last four games of the first round of the 2015/2016 Ghana Premier League (GPL) season.

The Phobians lead the standing by a point after 11 games, and, will next play Sekondi Hasaacas at home as they seek to preserve their leadership of the table.

Further games before the first round ends, will come against Aduana Stars at Dormaa, Liberty Professionals in Accra and Dreams FC at Dawu.

And Preko says they will not be complacent going into these games as there is a lot at stake to be won by the club.

”We have some very tough games ahead of us to close the first round of the league, and will approach them with all seriousness, hoping to win all,” Preko told the club’s official newspaper, the Hearts News.

“These are games that will help define how we will approach the second half of the season, and, we intend to win them all to maintain our position on top of the table,” he added.

The Phobians will head into the Hasaacas game, one point ahead of second place Wa All Stars, and, Preko believes a win will set them up for the rest of campaign.

“We know the quality of Hasaacas, and, we will not take them lightly on Wednesday; they have lost all their away games, but, that does not mean we will have it easy,” the former Ghana international said.

“Playing against a big club like Hearts of Oak will inspire them to put out a performance worthy of note, and, we are aware of this and, have been preparing well for them,” he assured.

“It will be the same approach in the other three games after this, and, we believe we can produce the results that will keep us at the top of the ladder when the first round ends,” the deputy Ghana U-20 coach added.

“These are all difficult games, but, we trust in the quality of our boys to step-up to the table and, perform very well at anytime,” he promised.

We Will Not Be Complacent In Final Four Games – Preko

We Are Fully Concentrated - Atingah

Accra Hearts of Oak central defender, Vincent Atingah has said the team is fully concentrated and focused on the task ahead now that they have taken leadership of the Ghana Premier League (GPL) table.

The Phobians moved top of the log with their hard-fought 1-0 victory away to Berekum Chelsea last Sunday as previous leaders, Wa All Stars lost, and, the big man says they are determined to keep their position at the top.

He told the clubs official newspaper, the Hearts News that they will work extra hard to maintain top spot as they chase a first league title since the season of 2008/09.

“We will not be complacent by our position on the league table,” Atingah said, adding that there are a lot more matches to play with those behind them eager to take advantage of any slip-up on their part.

“There are 19 more games to be played in the GPL, and, every point is important; we will therefore work extra hard to win as many of them as possible to clinch the title at the end o the campaign,” he said.

Hearts of Oak will be engaged in a friendly encounter with lower tier side Storm Stars Academy at Larteh Akwuapem on Sunday as the GPL takes a break this weekend.

They lead the standing with 21 points after 11 games, and will next host Sekondi Hasaacas at the Accra Sports Stadium next Wednesday when the competition resumes.

We Are Fully Concentrated - Atingah

Robin Gnange - We Cannot Be Happy With One Point Lead

Captain of Accra Hearts of Oak, Robin Gnange said his side cannot be happy with their one point lead at the top of the Ghana Premier League (GPL) after 11 games.

The Phobians returned to the summit of the league with a slim 1-0 victory over Berekum Chelsea on Sunday, and, now lead Wa All Stars by a point heading to the midway point of the season.

But Gnange said the team cannot be happy with the point difference and want to do more for the club as they chase a first league title since the season of 2008/09.

“We want to be winning all of our games as that will carry us to our target of winning the championship at the end of the campaign,” Gnange said after they win on Sunday.

“Last time, we fought to get the victory but unfortunately we did not get the three points though our game was not bad,” he added, in reference to their defeat to Asante Kotoko in Accra last week.

“The spirit was there and motivation too so we worked very hard at training and we supported each other to get the result here,” Gnange continued.

“We are happy we are on top of the table but it is not over because there’s only a point difference between us and Wa All Stars,’ the Ivorian noted.

“We are not too much happy [at the moment] because we need to create a gap between us and the second-placed team before we can be happy,” he charged.

“But this match is past and gone and so we are going back to correct our mistakes and to work very hard so that the next game, we can get the three points as well,” he said.

Accra Hearts of Oak will next play Sekondi Hasaacas at the Accra Sports Stadium in their next GPL game, and, will be favoured to win this one as the visitors have lost all their away games.

Robin Gnange - We Cannot Be Happy With One Point Lead

We Are Ready For Berekum Chelsea Game – Coach Keni

Accra Hearts of Oak coach Kenichi Yatsuhashi has said his side is ready for their next Ghana Premier League (GPL) game as they seek to get back to winning ways after losing their last league fixture.

The Phobians will travel to the Brong Ahafo region to face the might of Berekum Chelsea at the Golden City Park and Coach Keni said they will rise up to the challenge.

He has overseen the team’s training this week to the Legon Ajax Park in preparation for this encounter and hopes it will reflect in their play on Sunday.

“Training has been very good and the players have made a very good effort,” he said, adding that “we will definitely are ready for the game”.

The Phobians will be out to defend their unbeaten away record in the league this season, and, most importantly, restore confidence to the side after their painful loss to Kotoko last Monday.

“Our away form has been good and we hope to continue with that in this game,” Coach Keni said, insisting that they are not under pressure to perform going into this game after losing to their bitter rivals.

“Our players are mentally ready and focused to beat Chelsea. Every game we play, either home or away, we are going in for three points and we will do our best,” the Japanese-American said.

The Phobians will depart Accra to Berekum on Saturday morning for Sunday’s game against a Chelsea side that has won all their five home games this season.

 

We Are Ready For Berekum Chelsea Game – Coach Keni

We Cannot Allow Leicester To Win Title-Van Gaal

Louis van Gaal has warned Leicester City that his Manchester United players will not allow them to win the Barclays Premier League title at Old Trafford on Sunday.

Claudio Ranieri’s men require three more points to secure the championship crown, but the Reds must also win with a place in the top four still up for grabs and four important matches left to play.

Speaking to reporters at his pre-match press conference at the Aon Training Complex on Friday afternoon, van Gaal remained quietly optimistic of securing UEFA Champions League qualification next season and spoke of delaying the Foxes’ coronation as Premier League champions.

“I think we have to beat Leicester because we are still in the race for the first positions, so we have to beat them,” he said. “We cannot allow that they are the champions this weekend at Old Trafford. I think they shall be the champion a week later, so we don’t spoil the party, just postpone it a little bit.

“I was the first who said that they could be champions and now a presenter [Match of the Day’s Gary Lineker] has to wear underwear when they are the champions. For me it is not a surprise; I say that many, many times. I believe in team building and the manager has done that with this team.

“They had the circumstances to play always with the same team as they did not play so many matches as the other teams in the league, so it is always possible. It is good for the Premier League and the sport of football that not always the same teams are the champion.”

At his press conference, van Gaal was also quizzed on Ranieri’s remarkable work this season and the Dutchman was full of praise for the Italian, citing their previous meetings as managers in La Liga.

“Yeah, it was never easy to beat his teams,” van Gaal told reporters. “Valencia and Barcelona is also more or less a derby so it is a difficult match. He has always organised his teams very good.”

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We Cannot Allow Leicester To Win Title-Van Gaal

We Will Build On This Momentum – Coach Keni

Accra Hearts of Oak Coach Kenichi Yatsuhashi has said his side will press home their new found confidence after overcoming AshantiGold Sporting Club in their last Ghana Premier League (GPL) game.

The Phobians posted a hard-fought 2-1 victory over the Miners at the Len Clay Stadium at Obuasi in their Match-Day Nine GPL encounter to maintain second spot on the log.

Te win also ensured that they remain the only side in the competition yet to lose an away game as and this Coach Keni said they will look to build on.

“Prior to this game, we had not recorded good results (not won in four in all competitions), and, we wanted to put out a statement by returning to the form that we started the season with,” Coach Keni said.

“This is an important win for us and we hope to build on this momentum for the remainder of this first round,” he added.

Hearts will next play bitter rivals Kumasi Asante Kotoko in their next GPL game on Monday, 2 May at the Ohene Djan Stadium in Accra in what will be the top-liner of the Match-Day 10 fixtures.

“We have another difficult opponent in our next game, and, we will prepare very well for them, hoping to win the three points at stake and move on with our campaign,” the Japanese-American stressed.

We Will Build On This Momentum – Coach Keni

We Were Determined To End Our Poor Away Run – WAFA Goalkeeper

Razak Abalorah has said his West Africa Football Academy (WAFA) side was determined to end their poor away run in this season’s Ghana Premier League (GPL) when they played Accra Hearts of Oak last Wednesday in Accra.

Prior to that encounter, the academy lads had lost all their three away games by a similar margin (0-1) to Berekum Chelsea, Aduana Stars and Dreams FC, and, the goalkeeper said they were determined to halt that run going into this game.

The Academy lads frustrated the Phobians to a 1-1 stalemate at the Ohene Djan Stadium in Accra to record their first away point of the season.

“We were determined not to lose this one,” he said after the game, adding that they will build on this performance in their subsequent away games.

“Our game plan worked for us as we did not them to settle into any rhythm that could make them trouble us on the day,” he added, insisting that they did everything possible to win but Hearts fought back to earn a draw.

WAFA opened the scoring in the first half through Charles Boateng before Cosmos Dauda leveled for the Phobians in the second as the spoils were shared.

They will next play Ebusua Dwarfs at Sogakope on Sunday before heading to Bechem to play Bechem United in their next GPL away game the week after.

We Were Determined To End Our Poor Away Run – WAFA Goalkeeper

We Must Be Consistent To Be Champions – Mustapha Essuman

Experienced midfielder of Accra Hearts of Oak, Mustapha Essuman has urged his teammates to be more consistent in their approach to the campaign as they chase silverware at the end of the season.

This according to him is the only way they can be assured of winning something at the end of the campaign to end the club’s trophy drought over the last few seasons.

Hearts under their Japanese-American coach Kenichi Yatsuhashi, has made a promising start to the season, and, sit in second place with 14 points, three behind leaders Wa All Stars in the Ghana Premier League after seven games.

The Phobians have lost one and drawn the other in their last two games, and this Mustapha believes must be improved upon if they are win something at the end of the season.

“We should be a lot more consistent with our performance as that is the surest way we can become successful at the end of season,” he said.

The Phobians will next play Division One outfit Samartex FC in an MTN FA Cup round of 32 game on Saturday at Samreboi in a game Mustapha hopes Coach Kenichi Yatsuhashi can guide them to success.

“He is a top coach and his work so far has justified why he was brought here,” he said, adding that with the right approach Hearts can win this competition at the end of the campaign”.

“We know the game with Samartex will be difficult as they will be at home,” he added, insisting that “we will not underrate them and will go all out for the win”.

Mustapha therefore urged his colleagues to rise up to the challenge in Saturday’s game and press on for the win to advance to the next stage of the competition.

We Must Be Consistent To Be Champions – Mustapha Essuman

We Know Nothing About Samartex FC - Hearts

Accra Hearts of Oak captain, Robin Gnagne has admitted in an interview with Sportscrusader.com that, the team has no knowledge of their MTN FA Cup opponents.

Hearts will play division one side, Samartex FC in a round of 32 clash on Saturday, as they fight to clinch the trophy, that has eluded them since the 2000 footballing season.

The Ivorian who has been a pillar in defense since he joined Hearts a couple of seasons ago, has been a hit with the Phobians this season.

He said, “we have no knowledge of our MTN FA Cup opponent (Samartex FC), we have never seen them before, but they have seen us because we (Hearts) are bigger than them (Samartex FC).”

“We are prepared mentally and physically for them as they will come all out against us as they have nothing to lose,” he added.

We Know Nothing About Samartex FC - Hearts

Coach Adepa Is A Reason We Are Doing Well – Richard Arthur

Wa All Stars attacker Richard Arthur insists their coach Enus Adepa is one of the reasons the team is doing well in the Ghana Premier League (GPL) this season.

The northern club has made an amazing start to the season as they sit top of the GPL log with 14 points from the opening six games of the season and are also undefeated.

Arthur who has scored two goals this season, has lauded the influence of Coach Adepa for the superb season his side are enjoying in the GPL  and believes they could go on to do great things this season.

“The influence of Coach Adepa has been great on the squad this season and he is part of the many reasons why we are doing well in the league,” Arthur said.

He believes the tactical ingenuity of the gaffer is what has propelled the team to the top of the league and stressed that they will press on for the rest of the season.

Arthur played an instrumental role in helping All Stars end the unbeaten run of Accra Hearts of Oak with a 3-1 win at the Accra Sports Stadium last Sunday in their GPL encounter.

He would hope to keep his good form going when they take on Ebusua Dwarfs in their next GPL game on Sunday at the Wa Stadium where they have won all their three games.

Coach Adepa Is A Reason We Are Doing Well – Richard Arthur

We Expect Even Tougher Matches - Coach Keni

Accra Hearts of Oak Kenichi Yatsuhashi says the club expects a lot more tougher matches in all competitions this season and is bracing himself up for the challenge.

Coach Keni saw his side lose their unbeaten start to the season ended by Wa All Stars at the Ohene Djan Stadium in Accra last Sunday as they went down 1-3 to the northern club in the top-liner of the Ghana Premier League (GPL).

“The competition is tough as all clubs come in prepared to fight for every point at stake, and, you have accept the challenge and press on,” Coach Keni said.

“I take the blame for the defeat to All Stars and congratulate the opponent for the win,” he said after the game adding that he expects Hearts of Oak to bounce back stronger.

“We will learn from this defeat and continue to work hard in training as there is no easy games around in this league, and, we expect even tougher matches,” the Japanese-American added.

Hearts of Oak faced some difficulties in last Sunday’s game, a situation that contributed to the team’s first defeat of the season in all competitions and Coach Keni is keen to address them.

“The performance on the day was not our best as we have played better this season and could have put in a lot more than what we produced,” he stressed.

 

We Expect Even Tougher Matches - Coach Keni

We Are Sorry For All Stars" Defeat - Cosmos Dauda

Accra Hearts of Oak striker, Cosmos Dauda has issued an apology to fans of Accra Hearts of Oak following their Ghana Premier League (GPL) defeat to Wa All Stars in Accra last Sunday.

The Phobians lost 1-3 at the Ohene Djan Sports Stadium to the northern club in a battle of two unbeaten sides in the topmost liner of the Match-Day Six GPL fixtures over the weekend.

Dauda, who came on as a substitute in the game, said the players feel disappointed with the result and promised that they will bounce back stronger in their next game.

“We fell short on the day, and, All Stars deserved their win and we congratulate them on this,” he said after the game.

“We apologize to our die-hard fans and appreciate the love they have showed us throughout the season,” he added.

Dauda promised that they will work hard to bounce back to winning ways after seeing their unbeaten run to the season ended by All Stars on Sunday.

All Stars sit top of the GPL table with 14 points after six games, and, remains the league’s only undefeated side going into the next round of games at the weekend.

Hearts will travel to the Brong Ahafo region to play debutants, Techiman City on Sunday in what promises to be another tough game for the capital club.

We Are Sorry For All Stars" Defeat - Cosmos Dauda