2024-12-23

Football

”Some people are bringing Hearts of Oak to a lower level; I won’t accept that” – Hearts Coach

Head coach of Accra Hearts of Oak, Aboubakar Ouattara has stated his
opposition to mediocrity that has threatened the club’s status as the biggest
club in Ghana.

The Ivorian trainer won his first match in charge of the club when he superintended over a a 3-0 win over Real Tamale United (RTU) on Sunday.

A brace of goals from Hamza Issa and a third by Enoch Asubonteng wrapped up a comprehensive win.

During the pitch side interview, the interviewer described Hearts as one of the biggest club in Ghana. Ouattara promptly interrupted him to correct what he thought was wrong.

Interviewer: ”Hearts of Oak is one of the biggest clubs in Ghana…”

Coach Aboubakar Ouattara (interrupts): ”Not in Ghana. One of the biggest clubs in Africa but the people are bringing this team to a lower level.”

Ouattara stated his abhorrence for any such performance or behavior that does not meet the club’s high standards.

”I can never accept that. We are going to try to bring Hearts of Oak to their past (successful) era.

”But only hard work will make that possible. Nothing else.”

Hearts are ninth on the league table with 24 points and are five points from fourth place.

The Phobians are also eight points from league leaders, Samartex 96 – who face Aduana Stars on Monday.

Paris 2024Q: Zambia edges Ghana 1-0 for crucial first-leg advantage

Zambia has taken a crucial first-leg advantage over Ghana in their third-round 2024 Olympic Games qualifiers at the Accra Sports Stadium.

The Copper Queens secured a 1-0 win over the Black Queens in the all-important third round first leg match played on Friday evening.

The goal was scored very early in the match but Ghana’s senior women’s national team, who had lost just one game in their 11 recent matches, could not find the equaliser.

The task has now become herculean for the Black Queens as they head to Zambia for the reverse fixture in five days – on Wednesday, February 28.

The Black Queens did not have a good start to the match as they looked jittery from the start which was eventually punished by the imperious Zambia team.

18 minutes in, the world’s most expensive female footballer, Racheal Kundananji, gave the visitors the lead.

The Bay FC player chipped the Ghana goalkeeper to give her side the lead, a lead that ultimately secured them the win.

Hearts to play RTU in Accra following NSA approval

Hearts of Oak will host Real Tamale United (RTU) at the Accra Sports Stadium on Sunday after securing approval from the National Sports Authority (NSA).

Sunday’s match will be the first Ghana Premier League game at the venue since the NSA closed down the facility to sporting activities.

Since the NSA communicated its decision, Hearts of Oak, Great Olympics and lower tier clubs who use the facility were forced to find alternate venues.

Hearts were forced to host the super clash against Asante Kotoko and the Ga Mashie Derby, in Kumasi’s Baba Yara Stadium.

On Monday, the NSA opened the Accra Sports Stadium to a sporting activity for the first time when the Black Queens used the facility for their training.

The Queens have since been training ahead of the third round Paris 2024 Olympic Qualifier versus Zambia at the same venue.

The match is scheduled to kick off at 4 PM on Friday.

Paris 2024Q: ‘First leg against Zambia is a must-win’ – Nora Hauptle

Black Queens head coach Nora Hauptle says her girls are ready to step up to the next level when they face Zambia on Friday, February 23.

Ghana face Zambia in the third round of qualifiers for the 2024 Olympic Games to be staged in Paris, France, later this year.

The Queens have won 10 of their last 11 games across all competitions including two ties in the pursuit of a first-ever Olympic appearance.

The fixture against the Copper Queens will be the first real test for the Ghana senior women’s national team as they face a team in the top five places on the continent.

Speaking during her presser ahead of the game, the Swiss trainer said her side will be ready for the tough task ahead.

“Zambia, of course, is a big opponent. They have been at the World Cup. They played 21 games last year and have good individual players so I think it’s a must-win and we want to win,” she said.

“We want to face the top individual players with a top team. This is our cradle and we are working properly and excited that we can start tomorrow.

All 23 players have been involved in the team’s last two training sessions with the head coach boasting a full house for the game.

This will be the second meeting between Ghana and Zambia after the former lost 3-2 in a friendly game in 2018.

The game at the Accra Sports Stadium kicks off at 17:00 GMT with the second leg set for February 28.

CAF Champions League: Al Ahly writes to CAF to postpone match against Medeama SC

Egyptian giants Al Ahly SC formally have written to the Confederation of African Football (CAF) to postpone their upcoming match against Ghanaian champions Medeama SC.

In a statement on Wednesday night, Ahly said the plane carrying the delegation from Accra to Kumasi could not to complete the journey.

Although the flight landed at the Accra airport to refuel, a gastric collision with the front of the fuselage, resulted in a malfunction.

The plane was no longer able to fly despite efforts to fix the problem.

To make matters worse, attempts to find a substitute flight for the Al Ahly contingent yielded no results.

The contingent have therefore been forced to spend the night in Accra and are expected to be on the first flight to Kumasi on Thursday morning.

Competition rules stipulate that visiting teams must have at least one training session at the match venue before matchday.

With the team set to arrive on Thursday, it is unlikely that Ahly will train on the same day amidst fears of jetlag.

Ahly have therefore written to CAF ostensibly to postpone Friday’s match to Saturday.

The defending champions are top of Group D with six points while Medeama SC are bottom of the pack with four points, with two matches to conclude the group stage.

Paris 2024Q: Youth and Sports Ministry pays Black Queens outstanding bonuses ahead of Zambia game

The Ministry of Youth and Sports has cleared all bonuses owed the Black Queens ahead of their crucial qualifier against Zambia.

GSN 24 LIVE gathers the Ministry has now cleared all outstanding bonuses owed to the games from their previous three qualifiers.

The Black Queens had been owed bonuses for games against Benin, Rwanda and Namibia which were all played last year.

Ahead of the game against Zambia, there were reports of unrest in the team’s camp due to the unsettled bonuses.

The development also led to public outcry demanding payment for the Queens who have been on an excellent form since Nora Hauptle took over as head coach of the team.

The Sports Minister, Mustapha Ussif, Ghana FA President, Kurt Okraku and Gifty Oware-Mensah visited the team on Wednesday night to have a dialogue after which their per diems were paid before the bonuses were eventually paid.

They were issued cheques for GH₵85,000 each, the equivalent of $7,500 at the Bank of Ghana rate.

Ghana faces Zambia in the first-leg encounter on Friday, February 23.

The Black Queens are two ties away from a first-ever appearance at the Olympic Games with this year’s edition set for Paris, France

‘Thank you for your concern’ – Baba Rahman expresses gratitude following harrowing collision in cup game

PAOK left-back Baba Rahman has conveyed his appreciation to well-wishers following a harrowing collision with Panathinaikos defender Georgios Vagiannidis that led to an emergency situation.

The former Augsburg defender suffered a head injury during his team’s cup game against Panathinaikos, where he collided with Vagiannidis and lost consciousness. Fortunately, the medical team acted swiftly to resuscitate him.

In a statement shared on social media, Rahman expressed gratitude for the overwhelming concern and well wishes he received. He reassured everyone that scans have indicated no major damage from the incident.

“Hello, just wanted to thank everyone for their concern and well wishes in the last 12 or so hours. Thankfully I’m recovering well and scans have shown no major damage.

“I’d like to also say a big thank you to Georgios Vagiannidis for personally checking in on me at the hospital.

“It was a tough night but I’d be back running up and down again soon,” Rahman wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

Rahman, who has been a pivotal player for PAOK since joining from Reading, has displayed impressive performances in 18 league games, scoring three goals and providing two assists.

Despite his significance to the squad, he opted out of the recent Black Stars squad for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) to focus on recovery and regain strong form.

Rahman’s positive update on his recovery provides relief to fans and the football community as a whole.

Victor Osimhen salvaged a draw for Napoli in his first club appearance since December as they held Barcelona in their Champions League last-16 first leg.

Robert Lewandowski handed Barca the lead in the 60th minute in Italy when he arrowed an effort into the bottom corner from the edge of the area.

Barcelona were dominant against a Napoli side whose final-third efforts were often lacking in Francesco Calzona’s first game in charge.

But the hosts eventually found a way back when Osimhen slipped past his marker in the box before rifling past Marc-Andre Ter Stegen to level.

The second leg takes place in Barcelona on 12 March.

Osimhen was part of the Nigeria side who lost to Ivory Coast in the Africa Cup of Nations final in February and missed his side’s most recent league game through suspension.

The visitors had the brighter start with 16-year-old Lamine Yamal – who became the youngest player to feature in the Champions League knockout stage – making inroads on the right-hand side.

Xavi’s side pressed relentlessly in the final third, charging down Napoli’s attempts to build from the back and nullifying the hosts’ ability to threaten.

Napoli goalkeeper Alex Meret was forced to save efforts from Yamal and Lewandowski before he reacted well to palm away an Ilkay Gundogan effort from distance.

The Italian side have severely struggled in their Serie A title defence, languishing in ninth place and trailing leaders Juventus by 27 points, and replaced Walter Mazzarri with Calzona – who is also Slovakia manager – on Tuesday.

There were few signs of immediate improvement, though, and they failed to even register a shot in the first half, a first for Napoli in the Champions League.

Osimhen tried to make runs behind the defence but was often left isolated as the hosts failed to muster moves in Barcelona’s half.

Xavi’s side, who have faltered in La Liga and are eight points behind leaders Real Madrid, were dominant for much of the match, but Napoli began to grow into the game in the second half and were more energetic after making substitutions.

Barcelona broke the deadlock through Lewandowski and were headed for victory, but the hosts eventually found their footing and fought their way back to a draw.

Story By BBC Sports

Paris 2024Q: 21 players involved in Black Queens second training session ahead of Zambia qualifier

Twenty-one (21) players were present for the Black Queens’ second training session at the Accra Sports Stadium on Tuesday, February 20.

Nora Hauptle and her side continue to prepare for the first leg of their 2024 Olympic Games third-round qualifier which is set for Friday.

The 21 players who trained on Tuesday had Charlton Athletic’s Freda Ayisi available, Jacqueline Owusu of Real Sociedad was also involved with Linda Eshun also joining. The three players were missing from the first day of training.

Only goalkeeper Vivian Antwi Adjei and forward Gifty Assifuah, both of 1207 Antaly Spor, missed Tuesday’s session having arrived short before the team left for the Accra Sports Stadium.

The Black Queens are chasing a first-ever appearance at the Olympic Games and have had to beat Guinea and Benin en route to reaching the third round of the qualifying stage.

Pay the Queens! Tony Baffoe fires Sports Ministry

Former Ghana international Tony Baffoe has fired the Sports Ministry over their refusal to pay monies owed the Black Queens ahead of Friday’s Paris 2024 Olympic Qualifier against Zambia.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Tony Baffoe who visited the team’s training on Tuesday, said the Sports Ministry ought to respect the Black Queens.

Respect them and pay them !!they have gone all out all this while ! they have done a fantastic job ..players -Coach and the technical team !the match against Zambia is crucial ..respect them and pay them !!! https://t.co/cmUBsokg0T— Anthony Baffoe (@AnthonyBaffoe) February 21, 2024

The Queens are owed qualification bonuses from two rounds of qualifying in the Paris 2024 Olympic Qualifiers and the Africa Women’s Cup of Nations Qualifiers.

They have only been paid for the two-legged affair over Guinea (Olympic Qualifier) while bonuses from wins over Benin (Olympic Qualifier), Rwanda and Namibia – both Africa Women’s Cup of Nations Qualifiers, have not been settled.

In all, the Sports Ministry owes each Black Queens player, a total of $7,500 from the six qualifying matches.

Sources inside the Black Queens camp have told JoySports that the ladies are contemplating boycotting Friday’s qualifier against Zambia.

The Black Queens have been training since Monday despite gov’t refusal to pay their bonuses

Since the team started camping on Monday, no official from the Ghana Football Association or the Sports Ministry have visited the team.

It is unclear whether officials have stayed away from the team in order to avoid a possible confrontation with the ladies over the bonus situation.

GSN24LIVE NEWS

Yamal and Lewandowski help Barcelona beat Athletic Bilbao

Fulham vs Leicester: Alex Iwobi’s winner helps Cottagers triumph over Ndidi’s Foxes

Arsenal survived their latest severe examination from bogey side Aston Villa to emerge with a statement victory after a thunderous encounter at Villa Park.

Roglic wins stage to close on Vuelta leader O’Connor

Baba Yara Stadium will be ready for Ghana vs. Angola AFCON qualifier, assures NSA chairman