Caleb Amankwah Says Hearts Top Brass Influence Team Selection : Former Accra Hearts of Oak defender Amankwah Caleb has made a startling revelation about how Samuel Boadu’s player selection for matches at the Phobian club was influenced by the top brass of the Continental Club Masters in an interview with Ghanasportspage.com.
The former Aduana FC center-back recounts the build-up to the Asante Kotoko 1 Hearts of Oak 1 league game on September 25th , 2022 at the Babayara sports stadium as he claims the hierarchy of the Phobian side picked the team for head coach Samuel Boadu who was powerless and forced to do exactly what his bosses instructed him to do.
“To me it is not that I am no more a player of Hearts of Oak that is why I am saying all this. But when Samuel Boadu was in charge of the team last season , when we started the league season there were some players who were really on form from the pre-season into the start of the league ; Myself , Amankwah Baffi and I think Gideon Asante. We were on form. We started the season with a game at Aduana , I got a red card and so I left the game. That was the same time Konadu Yiadom arrived at the club. The next game was against Olympics which ended in a draw and the third was against Kotoko in Kumasi” , Caleb Amankwah said.
Amankwah who has taken his football career to Ethiopia after leaving the Ghanaian giants continued the narration :
“I remember ahead of that game against Kotoko , some of the players had arrived from the national team camp and they were Mohammed Alhassan , Afriyie Barnieh , Dennis Korsah , Konadu Yiadom and Suraj Ibrahim and I think Gladson Awako. They trained with the team just once and then we left Accra for Kumasi for the Kotoko game. On the eve of the match , I was confident I was going to start the game but then something happened. Someone in the team told me that I was not going to play because three different lists have been done and forwarded to the coach Samuel Boadu to use and that I was not part of the team. The person who told me this added that Boadu was even confused and had lost focus ahead of the game because of the influence from the directors. I don’t really know which people exactly did the lists for the coach , though.” , Caleb added.
“So I was really shocked but I relaxed. Now in the middle of the night around 2am , there is one pastor who prays for the team , he is also a Phobian and is based in Kumasi. He is really good. So around 2am thereabout the pastor called me and said he is at our hotel and so we should come around for him to pray for us. So we came down from our rooms and he prayed for us. After the prayer session , he told me that we will win against Kotoko but if Kotoko score the first goal , then the game will be a draw and that a defender will equalize for Hearts of Oak. He then whispered into the ears that I will be that defender to equalize. So when he said that I told him they are saying I am not going to play the game and so how is it possible that I am going to equalized for the team. He told me I will play and so I should relax”
“So in the morning, Samuel Boadu called me and told me that they have asked him not to play me and that he has been instructed to play Mohammed Alhassan and Konadu Yiadom instead. Now Alhassan too told Boadu that he is not fit and so he can’t play meaning I had to play.”
“So the game was played and eventually we drew Kotoko and I scored the equalizer. After the game Samuel Boadu was so happy and he told me that I saved him from embarrassment because they wanted him to lose the game so that they base on that result to sack him. You can call Boadu and ask him , he will confirm what I am saying. So later we were told he (Boadu) is not going to continue as head coach and the white coach was brought on board. So there are many things that happen in football “
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