Accra Hearts of Oak head coach Didi Dramani has urged his players to remain focused and purposeful ahead of their crucial encounter against Bibiani GoldStars this Sunday. The match, set for the Duns Park, pits the league’s third-placed side against the second-placed team in what promises to be a tightly contested battle.
Reflecting on the team’s recent performances, Dramani acknowledged both the challenges and opportunities his squad faced. “We are in a marathon league and sometimes you can find games that are very difficult like this. Even though they came second, we still had a lot of spaces. But I think that on that occasion, we still didn’t make the right decisions whenever we had the opportunity to finish off,” he said.
The coach highlighted the team’s ability to create chances but stressed the need for sharper decision-making in the final third. “I think that we still created the right chances in the game to at least have scored, if not three goals, but at least two goals in that game. If there was any attempt that they made, they made only one attempt in the first half and we made several of those attempts. It’s a worrying factor, but we need to keep working on our final third play in terms of having that courage to take the risk and then to make attempts and then shooting in very close range and finding targets.”
Dramani also spoke on the mentality of his players following past results. “They accepted that they take full responsibility in terms of the outcome and that they needed to improve in decision making and then playing with the purpose. When you play with a purpose, it means you have a very clear direction and that is what our focus in terms of our character discussion has been on. Keeping focus and then keeping a very purposeful approach so that that keeps our direction in terms of what goal we had set in the beginning of the season until now.”
Looking ahead to the upcoming match, Dramani emphasized the strength and style of GoldStars, describing them as “very direct and a very transitional side and then very fluid going forward.” He noted the importance of tactical discipline, physical readiness, and psychological preparation. “We need to be very physically, very ready and then psychologically very match oriented. That will influence our tactical discipline and then our resilience and then our comprehensive playing with energy.”
In terms of team selection, Dramani confirmed the return of key players Hamza, Enoch, and Emmanuel Amankwa, while monitoring Baba Adamu for a hip flexure issue. He also mentioned the ongoing absence of Prince.
Closing his remarks, the coach appealed to fans for support, particularly in the Ashanti region. “We are into this struggle together and so they should keep supporting us. Our fans in the Ashanti region need to come around. Those close to Takwa and other environs need to come around on Sunday to give us their mighty support as our number 12 players.”
Hearts of Oak will look to leverage their attacking potential and disciplined approach to edge out a competitive GoldStars side in what promises to be an intense top-of-the-table clash.
The post GPL : Dramani Urges Focus and Purpose Ahead of Tough GoldStars Clash first appeared on Africa Top Sports.
