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

Zidane Will Not Check Barcelona Score

Real Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane says he will not check Barcelona’s score until full-time on Saturday, despite his side needing the champions to slip up on the final day of the season.

Real would win La Liga with victory at Deportivo La Coruna only if Barca fail to win at Granada at the same time.

“I won’t know what’s going to happen until the end,” said Zidane.

“We don’t depend on ourselves, but we don’t have to think about the other game, just about our game and winning.”

Real were nine points off leaders Barcelona, having also played a game more, when they lost 1-0 to city rivals Atletico Madrid on 27 February.

Since then they have won all 11 La Liga games to take them to within a point of top spot.

Zidane only took over in January, replacing Rafael Benitez, and has won 20 of his 25 games in charge – also taking the club to the Champions League final against Atletico.

But the former France and Real Madrid midfielder and reserve team boss does not know whether he will remain in charge beyond the summer.

“I don’t know if I have earned the opportunity to continue,” he said.

“There were a lot of doubts and I can understand that. I haven’t won anything to make me think that I can stay on. We have two finals to play.”

BBC

Zidane Will Not Check Barcelona Score

Zika Will Not Derail Rio Olympics - IOC

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has said that it sees no need to cancel, delay or move the Rio Olympic Games because of the Zika virus threat.

However IOC medical director Richard Budgett said that it would continue to monitor the situation closely.

Dr Budgett was responding to a call by Canadian health Professor Amir Attaran for the Games to be postponed or moved.

Prof Attaran said that the influx of visitors to Brazil would result in the avoidable births of malformed babies.

“If the IOC and the World Health Organisation (WHO) do not have the generosity of heart to delay the games to prevent children being born and disabled their whole lives, then they’re among the cruelest institutions in the world,” Prof Attaran said in a telephone interview with the Associated Press news agency.

“What I’m asking for is a bit of delayed gratification so that babies aren’t born permanently disabled.”

Prof Attaran – a public health specialist – argues that Zika is far worse than the IOC is willing to admit.

In an article for the Harvard Public Review he says that Rio de Janeiro is more affected by Zika than anyone expected and that all it takes is one infected traveler to start a process that could ultimately result in a “full-blown global health disaster”.

He argues that if the Games go ahead, it would be especially unfair on countries like Nigeria, India and Indonesia, which do not have the same resources to fight Zika as Brazil.

But his point of view is hotly contested by Olympic and global health authorities including the WHO, who are adamant the 5-21 August Games will not be derailed by the virus.

The IOC – which adheres to the WHO’s advice – insisted there were no plans to relocate or postpone the games.

“The clear statements from WHO that there should be no restrictions on travel and trade means there is no justification for cancelling, delaying, postponing or moving the Rio Games,” Dr Budgett said.

“The IOC will continue to monitor the situation very closely and work with the WHO, and we’re confident as we’ve been advised by the experts that the situation will improve over the next three months.”

A separate IOC statement said that plans were in place to target mosquitoes and deal with their stagnant water breeding grounds..

The statement said it was important to remember the Olympic and Paralympics Games are taking place in the winter months of August and September, when mosquitoes should not be so abundant.

The Olympics are expected to attract about 500,000 visitors from abroad.

BBC

Zika Will Not Derail Rio Olympics - IOC

Hearts Will Go Top Of GPL With Win Over Kotoko

Accra Hearts of Oak will move top of the Ghana Premier League (GPL) table if they are able to win their Match-Day 10 encounter with Kumasi Asante Kotoko today.

Leaders Wa All Stars lost 0-1 to Medeama SC on Sunday, and, the Phobians will overtake them at the top of the table should they win this afternoon’s game in Accra.

All Stars has 20 points from 10 games with Hearts two points behind them on the table.

Hearts are huge favourites going into the Super Clash with Kotoko as they have been the more impressive of the two in the GPL so far.

They have five wins from nine games, and, have lost only once. They will lead the standing by a point if they manage to claim victory over their bitter rivals in the Ghanaian game.

Kotoko have endured an indifferent start to the campaign, having managed 11 points from nine games, a run that has included three wins, two drawn games and four defeats.

They lie in 12th position on the log, but, will move to ninth should they emerge victorious in this afternoon’s game.

The Porcupines have been tagged second favourites going into this encounter and, will be out to prove skeptics wrong.

 

 

Hearts Will Go Top Of GPL With Win Over Kotoko

I Will Be At Manchester United Next Season-Van Gaal

Louis van Gaal is adamant he will still be Manchester United manager next season, no matter what happens at the end of the season.

The Red Devils remain in contention for a top-four finish and are in the FA Cup final but speculation over the Dutchman’s future at the club persists.

Jose Mourinho has been heavily linked with replacing Van Gaal at Old Trafford but the 64-year-old is relaxed about his future and says he always felt it would take time to bring success to the club.

“I knew it would be like this. That’s why they hired me and we spoke about it,” he told reporters.

“We always knew that the process would take three years. I wanted to sign only for two years.

“The club wanted me to sign for three years, not me. I signed for three years – so next year you will see me again.

“Every week for six months I have been sacked – and yet I am still here. But this has happened to me at every club I have been at.

“I am doing the same job at United that I was hired to do at every club.

“People should assess the squad that I took over and make a comparison to the players we have now in terms of age.

“There is a big difference between what the people in the street think and the media. A big difference. I can only tell you my experiences and I don’t have to defend myself. I am a realistic man and so I only speak about facts.”

Van Gaal was also quick to defend his record since taking over in 2014 as he prepares to take on Leicester at Old Trafford on Sunday.

“The fact is that we finished fourth last year. At the moment we are fifth, but we are still able to finish third. On May 15 we will know for sure,” he added.

“The fact is that we are in the FA Cup Final. The fact is that we were in the Champions League. We didn’t do that last year.

“The fact is that we went further in the Capital One Cup. So there are a lot of pluses. Yes, we are in fifth and we are fighting for the one position that is the most important.

“We also have the best home record in the league, but we are one of the lousiest away teams of the top clubs and that is something we need to improve.”

Goal.com

I Will Be At Manchester United Next Season-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

Defeat Is Part Of The Game, We Will Respond – Robin Gnange

Accra Hearts of Oak captain, Robin Gnange says his team will respond to their first league defeat of the season insisting that they should be countered among the favourites for the title at the end of the campaign.

The Phobians lost 1-3 at home to Wa All Stars last Sunday in their Match-Day Six encounter of the Ghana Premier League (GPL) to concede top spot to the northern club.

But Gnange says defeat is part of the game and do not expect any club to go undefeated of the 30 matches each that they will play.

“It was not a good game for us, we came all out for victory but unfortunately we did not get it,” the Ivorian said after the game, adding that defeat is part of football.

“We are not down because we have more matches to play and we will go back to correct our mistakes and I believe in our next game, we will bounce back,” he added.

Hearts will travel to the Brong Ahafo region to play Techiman City in their next GPL game on Sunday and Gnange believes it is the perfect opportunity for them to respond.

“Our next game is away and we hope to deliver on Sunday to make our fans happy, he said, adding that they are determined to place Hearts of Oak in pole position at the end of the season.

 

Defeat Is Part Of The Game, We Will Respond – Robin Gnange

I Will Be Back Soon - Inusah Musah

Injured Accra Hearts of Oak defender Inusah Musah Keita has started some light training sessions as he hopes to fully recover from the foot injury that has sidelined him for over three months now.

The central defender picked up the injury in training with the capital club during one of their sessions last December, and, has not featured in any of the club’s programmes since.

However, the good news is that he is back in training doing some light workouts as he hopes to regain fitness and back in the plans of the Phobians.

He played a pivotal role for the club last season, and, is rated highly by their new Japanese-American trainer Kenichi Yatsuhashi.

Musah told Sportscrusader.com that he hopes to make a full recovery to feature in the plans of the coach and the club as they target success this season.

Accra Hearts of Oak have made a bright start in this season’s top-flight league in Ghana, and, sit top of the standing after five games with 13 points with an unbeaten record to boost.

I Will Be Back Soon - Inusah Musah