Former Asante Kotoko midfielder Stephen Oduro has been analysing the possibility of his former club lifting the 2021/22 Ghana Premier League title going into the second round, and he has thrown a word of caution against complacency, as he believes the second half of the league is always more difficult than the first.
Asante Kotoko lead the league log currently with 7 points difference away from second place Bechem United, which means the Porcupine Warriors would have to lose at least two matches in the second round for either Bechem United or any other club to have the chance to topple them. Asante Kotoko have not won the league for the past eight seasons after winning it last in the 2013-2014 season, but their chances of breaking the ‘curse’ to lift their 25th league title this season looks brighter.
Coach Prosper Ogum has already charged his boys to step up their performance going into the second half of the season, and club legend Stephen Oduro shares same notion, delving deeper into the nitty-gritty of the matter.
“If you look at the Ghana League, mostly the second round becomes more difficult”, Oduro told ghanasportspage.com in an exclusive interview. “Looking at my time under coach Maxwell Konadu, we were leading with about 11 to 12 points in the first round but even with that, it got to a time that things weren’t going well for us. Because when the league is turned into the second round, that is where people become much wilder; some want to avoid relegation, some want to finish in a better position – playing at the home grounds of relegation-threatened teams is not easy. So I will plead with my brothers [the Kotoko players] to hold onto the lead and keep seeking the face of God because we are not done yet”, he advised.
Oduro backed his advice with analysis of what could happen to go into the second half of the season, concluding, that the Porcupines can only relax and celebrate after the last whistle of the last match.
“For the league, you can say you’ve won it only after the last match because for now they [Kotoko] are leading with just seven points and that amounts to only about three matches if you lose three matches some will catch you up. In the second round, they will play 17 matches, meaning they have about 15 matches to equally fight for. So I will rather urge them to even put the lead aside and take it as though they are now starting the league because the second round is always more difficult than the first”, Oduro concluded.
The second half of the league begins this Friday, 25th February and Asante Kotoko will be hosting Dreams FC on Sunday at the Baba Yara sports stadium.
