480 games have come and gone, now we have a winner:

Hearts of Oak.

They beat Sporting Mirren 2-0 at the Ohene Djan stadium to make it. Mirre, sadly, have gone the other way and would be relegated.

That notwithstanding coach Emmanuel Afranie takes solace in building a formidable squad.
“Mirren is the most exciting side in the Premier League and it is a shame they have been relegated,” Afranie said.

“Inexperience caused us all this while but am happy that I have been able to build a team capable of doing many things in the future.

“I have a good team now and the future is very bright if the boys are kept. I am very sure they will come after one year. ”

About his reputation as a relegation specialist: “If there are no materials there is nothing a coach can do,”

“We just did not have the experience to compete at this level.”

But his captain Frank Boateng disagreed, claiming many of the players have played in the Ghana Premier League in the past.

Mirren is the latest club managed by the Metro TV group to be relegated after Zaytuna went down 12 months after they had been taken over by the media group.

Second place went to Kotoko, who drew 2-2 with King Faisal at home. They’ll settle for a continental spot.

Mirren were joined in the relegation places by All Blacks and Tema Youth. Tema Youth are swearing blood and thunder to fight the decision that shed them off what they feel is 6 hard earned points.

Said CEO Winfred Palmer: “If this is the way the fate of teams are decided in Ghana football fans will not turn up for matches

“For the sake of those fans and our teeming supporters we must go all out to ensure that the right thing is done.

“We are not ruling out any method including legal channels to seek redress.”

Tema Youth’s fate was decided after they were ducked six points and six goals by the Disciplinary Committee from their accumulated tally.

The Disciplinary Committee’s decision is as result of two cases brought against the Tema side by Berekum Arsenals and Eleven Wise over the eligibility of player, Emmanuel Clottey.

The latest to be embroiled in the bribery rumour mill are Berekum Arsenals. They drew 1-1 with Hearts on Sunday and the whispers permeating all corners is that the game had been fixed.

Don’t forget that Hearts needed to avoid a draw at all costs and for some, Berekum Arsenals should have won that game considering how the Phobians played. And also that Arsenals played at their Golden City Park home which has been impregnable for the better part of five years.

Yet the Arsenals have thrown out these potentially-damaging suggestions being aimed at them. Some theorists have even ventured as far as saying that before the match, the Gunners had been paid 40,000 Ghana cedis by Hearts. That’s in the region of $30k.

The 1-1 result sent the Phobians above their rivals Kotoko and hold a slim one-point lead at the top. Arsenals team manager J.A Awudu told Joy FM in Accra:

“All these are allegations! Kotoko lost four matches in Kumasi: were they fixed? Hearts of Oak lost in Accra, were they fixed? Why should people have that perception?

“It’s football and the whole of the 16 teams are in competition and everybody spends money on his club and nobody will sit down to say ‘I will spend money and try to go back to relegation or first division.’

“It is very difficult. They are all allegations and illusions that people rally around – they are perceptions.”

In Ghana, the last five-ten games in the season is a time to make money. For those clubs comfortably out of the relegation zone at this time, they can afford to ‘sell’ their games for badly needed revenue to keep them afloat in the coming seasons.

And since relegation to the Division One is almost suicidal, lower-placed teams also do all they can – including exchanging envelopes – to avoid the drop.

Ghana international striker Asamoah Gyan is said to be a target for David Moyes’ men, with reports that he is in England this week to hold discussions with the club.

The 22-year-old Rennes player has failed to make an impact in Ligue 1 and was linked with a move to The Toffees this time last year as well. Asamoah has been in and out of the treatment room.

Many do not doubt his talent, yet there is a worry that he may do a Michael Owen on the country and never really fulfill his true potential.

No matter how much he is crocked, we’ll always remember him for this moment of history 3 years ago in Germany.

After 5 goals in the Asian Champions League and 2 goals in the on-going qualifiers, Prince Tagoe may be feeling he is ready for the new challenge he has set himself to.

He trained – for the first time – with TSG Hoffenheim yesterday. He signed last month and only arrived in Germany on Saturday after leaving Saudi club Al-Ettifaq.

The German Bundesliga is rungs above any in Asia and the two-week intensive pre-season training session he has been subjected to should help him know what he is up for. His new team finished seventh in the Bundesliga last time round.

It is essential that the former Hearts of Oak man gets regular playing time if his position in the Stars setup is to be kept. Tagoe is a fighter, that much we know, however, we are left to wonder if his new coach Ralf Rangnick will give him the chance to show what he’s got.

Prince should not have racial issues with his team as they had four Africans in their setup last season: Nigerian Chinedu Obasi Ogbuke, Senegal’s Demba Ba, Ghana defender Isaac Vorsah, and Ivorian Boubacar Sanogo.

How he got here

Tagoe started his career abroad after the 2006 Africa Cup of Nations when he signed for Saudi side Al Ittihad from local club Hearts of Oak.

He played for Al Shabab in the United Arab Emirates in 2007 before joining Al Ettifaq a year later.

Name: Prince Tagoe
Nationality: Ghana
Date of birth: 9 November 1986
Age: 22
Position: Forward

Fifa does another training program for photographers/journalists. – Goal

Ghana’s got talent! Laryea’s back!

Today is D-day in the Egyptian league and Ismaili can spoil Manuel Jose’s bye-bye party for Ahly.

Imagine Frank Rijkaard in Africa. Now imagine him coaching Al Ahly. So says Goal.

Edmund Owusu Ansah to Petrojet? – GNA via Myjoyonline

Lloyd Owusu wants to move Down Under. – Ghanasoccernet

The same site also reports that troubled former Kotoko CEO has been granted bail.

What teams would be relegated in this year’s GPL(poll)

Still not sure? Here’s the table to help you make your decision!

Club (points)

1. Hearts (40)
2. King Faisal (30)
3. All Stars (29)
4. Wise (28)
5. Lions (28)
6. Chelsea (27)
7. B Arsenals (26)
8. Kotoko (25)
9. Tema Youth (25)
10. Kessben (24)
11. Liberty Prof (22)
12. RTU (21)
13. All Blacks (19)
14. Hasaacas (19)
15. AshantiGold (15)
16. Mirren (14)

Date: Sunday, 17 May 2009

Kickoff: 1500hrs (subject to change)

Bechem Chelsea v All Blacks
Having dropped from their previous second placing, the Bechem boys look for another three points. All Blacks come to this game on a psychological low after a defeat to Wa All Stars. There’s only one word on their minds: win!

All Stars v Kessben FC
They won away in Swedru and now in their northern comforts in Wa, the FA boss’s boys must be confident of a win against Kessben. Kessben are in mid-table and won’t be too fazed about relegation just yet.

RTU v Berekum Arsenals
Berekum Arsenals are favourites after whipping Kotoko last Sunday. RTU haven’t fared too well and they have to win to make the season look rosier.

Kotoko v Lions
Faaaabulous! Where’s that refrain? Well, that should tell you what the season has been like for them. Opeele still does not know whether he’ll be shown the door and the fans are not happy. Lions won their last game and the traditional rivalry that has brewed between the two should be great.

Hasaacas v Hearts
Sekondi would be agog as Hearts engage their second western opposition in succession. Eleven Wise took a draw from them but Phobia would be looking for a fall forHasaacas.

Tema Youth v Eleven Wise
The six goal blitz Tema Youth meted out seems like aeons ago and with Wise coming from a vital draw against the champs, the Tema park should be a place to be. Just a point above Kessben, three points can go a long way to boost Tema Youth’s season.

Liberty v AshGold
Jones Attuquayefio has not had much luck with Liberty in premier league silverwares, but surely they must triumph against an AshGold team that is mentally beaten…but that beaten nature may yet spur them on in Accra.

May we have good football.

In fact you may be forgiven if you suggested it.

Yep, he is that popular and famous. But his women issues are leaving people scratching their heads. More on his other flings (yikes!) and mini-scandals later.

Ms. Dela Ackumey, a woman who many had long expected to be Michael’s wife, is tugging the Chelsea man’s purse. The argument is simple.

Essien says they are not married. Dela says they are. The argument may look simple but the legalese surely aren’t.

Essien and Dela started hanging out about four years ago and those who know them say they were very much into each other. It is worth noting that at the time Mike’s Lyon career was looking good. And obviously, the woman in Dela took notice.

What I gather is that the French francs being sent to Ms. Dela Ackumey meant that she knew her boy was a catch…and so she pressured him to start marriage rites.

Here’s where it becomes dicey. Even though they split last year, Ms. Ackumey insists the Bison had performed marriage rights on her and therefore wants their ‘divorce’ to reflect that.

Ms. Ackumey is from Anlo in the eastern part of Ghana where the Ewe tribe are predominantly settled. However, Essien’s lawyers (led by a member of the influential Ofori-Atta family) say the said rites the Chelsea player performed did not amount to marriage rites in the traditional sense.

The lawyers also say that even if the rites amounted to marriage rites, the ceremony was contrary to what the big-pound earner wanted.

The French francs being sent to Ms. Ackumey meant she knew her boy was a catch…and so she pressured him to start marriage rites.

Media bonanza

And so the stage is surely set for what is turning up to be a media event of considerable size. Already, the Chelsea and Ghana midfielder has grown into something of a national icon since his big money move to Chelsea three seasons ago.

In anticipation of the animalistic nature the Ghanaian and world media can morph into, the court may let the two testify in camera. Especially as Ms. Ackumey says she has video evidence to show that they were married.

Let-the-circus-begin-!

_____

Ghana’s Abramovich says tut-tut to the state of the Glo Premier league… – Ghanasoccernet

Nyantakyi is all for aggression. – Ghanafa

Former Black stars captain CK Akunnor has started seeing stars. – Kickoff Ghana