Newly appointed Head Coach of Hearts of Oak, Edward Odoom, will be in the saddle when the Phobians face Medeama SC in a top Ghana Premier League (GPL) second week clash at the Tarkwa and Abosso Park.
Odoom is coming in at a very difficult time worsened by the sack of his former boss, Kim Grant who was in charge when Hearts lost their week one match against Berekum Chelsea in Accra.
Though their issues have remained in the boardroom, it escalated a few days to the start of the season.
But it appeared the outcome of Sunday’s match was what broke the camel’s back; the Phobians found the defeat to Chelsea and the overall performance of the team unacceptable and showed him the exit door.
Odoom’s immediate task becomes very huge as fans will expect him to be in charge of the dressing room and return the Phobians, who have lost their recent friendly match to GlowLamp Academy and the President Cup match, to winning ways.
But they will face a confident Medeama side that pulled a 3-1 victory over Dwarfs in the first week and have indicated a strong desire to jump to the top of the log with a win over Hearts.
With the likes of Michelle Sarpong, Kofi Kodzi and Manaf Umar expected to return to the team, they will provide the needed support for striker Joseph Essor who will power the Hearts attack but Medeama are favourites to run home with the maximum points.
Other week one winners, Aduana Stars and AshantiGold SC will be engaged in kind battles against Accra Great Olympics and Kumasi based King Faisal who all lost their initial battles.
Olympics was thrashed 3-0 by the Miners at the Len Clay Stadium with Aduana Stars recording a 4-1 victory over Inter Allies.
But the ‘Wonder’ club and Faisal will be expected to stage an improved performance in their next games as they attempt to break the relegation curse that hangs around them.
For Olympics, their game will be a huge one considering the form of Aduana Stars top striker, Yahaya Mohammed who registered the season’s first hat-trick.
Survival will require some stability at the Olympics rear where they were found vulnerable against the Miners.
The situation will be the same for Faisal as they welcome the hungry Miners at the Baba Yara Sports Stadium.
But at the Baba Yara Sports Stadium, Faisal will present a tougher opposition, knowing how difficult it will be for them to climb the log.
At the Golden City Park, giant-killers, Berekum Chelsea have been tipped to snatch all three points in their game against Dansoman Liberty Professionals.
Liberty fought hard from two goals down to draw 2-2 with Legon Cities and would have to avoid a similar situation, especially when they play on ‘enemy’ territory.
Around the same time, Chelsea gave a good account of themselves in Accra where they upset the apple-cart with a 1-0 victory over Hearts of Oak.
Apart from scoring the only goal of the game, Chelsea gave a good account of themselves as they controlled for larger periods and stayed resolute when Hearts threatened.
At home, they will be expected to beat the ‘Scientific Soccer Lads’ who are yet to establish their scientific nature.
However, having played some of their best games against Chelsea, tomorrow’s clash will be no exception and could shock the hosts but Chelsea are huge favourites.
Dreams FC will travel to Techiman where they lock horns with Techiman Eleven Wonders; a game the host would want to win to breathe some hope into their campaign.
Karela FC, no doubt, remain one of the sides to look out for this season.
They will be on the road to Elmina where they come face to face with Elmina Sharks in a tricky affair.
The survival of the Sharks in the top flight can easily be attributed to their impressive performances at home but having undergone a few hitches at management level, it has affected their general output.
Tomorrow’s game would however be the first home appearance and would be given the benefit of the doubt.
The struggles of Dwarfs appears from over as evident in their previous game and against WAFA at Sogakope, they will be involved in a very difficult battle which the hosts are expected to win.
This afternoon at the Accra Sports Stadium, Inter Allies will welcome Bechem United in match of equals.
BY ANDREW NORTEY
