GPL: Five things we learned from match day 10

The 10th round of Ghana Premier League matches for this season began on Friday and ended on Monday evening, with interesting results across the various centres.

Hearts of Oak suffered their first defeat under new manager Slavko Matic, while Aduana and Kotoko shared the spoils. Kotoku Royals’ woes continued with their inability to pick a point in Tamale.

These are the five things that caught our attention.

GREAT OLYMPICS’ BAD RUN

Great Olympics lost to Tamale City on Saturday. Raphael Essien’s goal was cancelled out by Gideon Ofori Offei but Sampson Eduku scored eight minutes later to hand Tamale City their second victory in three games.

While Tamale City have avoided defeat in their last four home matches, Great Olympics will have a deep concern as to how they find their feet again after going on a very bad run.

For the first time in two years, the Accra-based side have now lost three games in a row. They’ve already lost four games this season, dropping them to eighth on the standings after 10 games.

Yaw Preko’s men must improve if they are to gain anything from their upcoming game against Asante Kotoko on January 8.

HUNTERS CUT DOWN OAK TREE

Cephas Mantey and Hafiz Konkoni spearheaded a successful mission to end Hearts of Oak’s  7-game unbeaten run at the Cape Coast Stadium.

In an intense battle that saw both sides end with a man-less, the duo scored two quick goals in the first half before Robert Addo Sowah found a consolation in the dying embers of the tie.

While a win could have sent Hearts to the second position, coach Slavko Matic rather tasted his first defeat after taking over the dugout of the Phobians.

The defeat also means Hearts of Oak now occupy the fourth position while Bibiani Gold Stars keep their top four hopes alive as they take the third place, with Bechem United climbing to fifth.

MEDEAMA BOUNCING BACK 

Medeama SC are on a recovery mission, having avoided defeat for the fourth time in a row with a victory over the weekend.

Vincent Attingah’s penalty-kick double helped the Yellow and Mauves defeat Accra Lions 2-0.

Medeama parted ways with David Duncan last week after a string of poor results in their first five matches, but the team is now on the rise, sitting ninth on the log.

Accra Lions, on the other hand, may have forgotten how to win games, as they continue to struggle despite a promising start to the season.

They have now gone four games without a win and will look to get one when they play Legon Cities on Friday.

REAL TAMALE UNITED OUT OF RELEGATION ZONE

Real Tamale United (RTU) scored more than two goals for the first time this season as they defeated Kotoku Royals 3-2, lifting them out of the relegation zone.

Following a 2-0 lead by RTU, Richard Dzikoe and Godwin Segia did well to restore parity for Kotoku Royals. However, Yusif Nurudeen’s goal in the 89th minute extended Kotoku Royals’ losing streak.

While this is RTU’s third home win in a row, Kotoku Royals have been the villains of the ongoing Premier League campaign, with seven consecutive losses.

RTU, on the other hand, can breathe a sigh of relief as they move up to 10th place, above Nsoatreman and Berekum Chelsea.

NO SLOT IS SECURED 

Given the points differential between teams in the league table, it is still too early to predict who will finish where.

The difference between fourth-placed Hearts of Oak and 16th-placed King Faisal (relegation zone) is only four points.

This means that if a team in the top half has a couple of bad results, they could fall to a very bad position, whereas relegation-threatened teams can move very high up the table with a few good results.

 

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