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Asante Kotoko’s Board has stepped in to douse the raging fire between a former General Manager of the club, Nana Akwasi Gyambibi alias Coker and the Chief Executive Officer of Club Consult Africa, Yussif Chibsah. Club Consult Africa is the firm that brokered Kotoko’s three-year deal with Portuguese kit manufacturer, Strike.

The Board says recent claims and counter-claims on the appropriateness of the contract and the quality of the Strike kits should cease forthwith. Coker, in a radio interview this week, passed what Chibsah deemed as damning remarks on the sponsorship agreement. “I was not here when the Strike contract was signed. I came to study the contract when I returned from abroad. When I saw the contract, I did not understand [it] so I took it to my legal advisor and he explained the details. It was there that I realised the contract was not good enough” Coker said on Ash FM. 

READ MORE:“I am ready to pull out if Kotoko is not willing to continue the strike deal” – Yusif Chibsah

“It worries me when people try to incite some serial callers to throw tribal insults and ethnic sentiments on me because of the [Strike deal] I brought to [Kotoko]. Again, I am ready to pull out if Kotoko is not willing to continue the Strike deal” Chibsah also responded on Twitter. With the club and the other companies involved at the risk of suffering damages to their reputation, Kotoko’s Board according to Yusuf Chibsah has demanded a cessation of the media row. 

“The most important thing is that, the Board has disassociated itself from the [unsavoury] comments” said Yussif Chibsah on Tuesday night on Accra-based Angel FM. “Before I came here, I had a conversation with the new Board. We wrote to them and they have responded. They have disassociated themselves from anyone or the media houses making those [unfortunate] comments. We have also decided that we will not comment on the issue”. 

Chibsah however warned that, they could resort to the court of law if further distasteful of remarks are published on his company. “If an individual or a media house speaks against us, we will deal with it or that person legally. I will plead with everyone to cease fire” said Chibsah who expressed disappointment over how things have turned out. 

“The people appointed by Manhyia have stated the club‘s position so let us cease fire. Let us also be mindful of our comments. All of us are working, we are in business. Both parties have their benefits in the agreement we signed. I feel very bad about what has been said and I have heard a lot of things. We are working with Kotoko. They have not said anything but we were forced out to explain our side of the story due to the unfortunate remarks”. 

The sponsorship deal, signed in November 2018, runs until October 2021.

By Jerome Otchere

Yusif Alhassan Chibsah has stated emphatically that he is ready to pull out from the Kotoko-Strike deal, which has come under serious scrutiny recently.

The former Black Meteors midfielder – who is the Chief Executive Officer of Club Consult Africa signed a three-year kit Sponsorship deal in 2018 with the Porcupine Warriors on behalf of Strike – a manufacturing company in Portugal.

Former Asante Kotoko General Manager, Nana Gyambibi Coker has stated categorically that the Reds has no contract with Strike, which Yusif Chibsah has defused.

Chibsah – who is unhappy about some utterances about the deal has expressed his readiness to pull the plug on the deal if Kotoko are not ready to continue.

“It worries me when people try to incite some serial callers to throw tribal insults and ethnic sentiments on me because of the Strike deal I brought to Asante Kotoko SC,” he told Kumasi-based Nhyira FM.

“Again, I am ready to pull out if Kotoko is not willing to continue the strike deal,” he stressed.

Hearts of Oak Nigerian forward Danjuma Ademola Kuti has expressed disappointment at the deficit in facilities at his new club despite the rich history of the Ghanaian giants.

The lanky striker recently penned down a two-year in May as the Phobians augmented their squad for the second half of the truncated 2019/20 Ghana Premier League.

Sharing his thoughts on the club’s Pobiman project, which is under the supervision of local contractors K.A. Estate Limited – who will finish the groundsworks after three months, Danjuma talked up the benefits of the project.

“I have heard of the new project [Pobiman] ongoing, it will help a lot because most times I like using Gym center, I like doing a lot of flexibility training so it’s very important to be more professional just that I was surprised,” he told Kumasi-based Oyerepa FM.

“You know Hearts of Oak is a very big club and I felt there will be a lot of facilities. I know they are very professional but I expected more,” he ended.

Kuti had stints with Lobi Stars and Fujairah SC in the United Arab Emirates.

Below are photos of how far the contractors have gone with their construction at Pobiman:

Coach Stephen Frimpong Manso has extended his contract with Division One League side Nkoranza Warriors by two more years.

The former Asante Kotoko defender rejoined the second-tier side earlier this year in a one-year deal with an option to extend. Frimpong Manso replaced Ibrahim Mohammed who was sacked.

There Asante Kotoko trainer has been tasked to qualify the team to the Ghana Premier League in the upcoming season which is tentatively scheduled to start second week of October.

This is his second stint at the club after leaving the club last year after the Normalization Committee Special Competition.

The former Ghanaian international has had spells with B.A United and King Faisal FC.

“Poetic” Mathew Anim Cudjoe is pleading with government of Ghana to ease restrictions on football, to enable them return to the field to “smell the grass” again.

Football activities are still on hold since it got suspended mid-March following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.

On Sunday, July 26, 2020 President of the Ghana, Nana Akufo-Addo lifted restrictions on two female national teams – the Black Maidens and Black Princess – to start training in preparations for international assignments in September.

However, the Ghana Premier League, and other competitions under the Ghana FA as well as all other contact games were announced to remain suspended.

Anim Cudjoe in an emotional tweet called on the President, Nana Akufo Addo, to give the green light for the return of football in the West African country.

“I want to smell the grass
again, get the feel of the ball on my boots. I plead with the President to lift the ban on Sports. My life is incomplete without football. The game is about discipline and fair play so to follow the protocols is very easy,” Cudjoe posted on Twitter.

Meanwhile, the Ghana Football Association has already announced second week October as the return date for the top-flight based on government’s approval.

SKYY FC President, Wilson Arthur has urged Ghanaian clubs to be innovative and consider farming as plan B amid the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Since the outbreak of the novel disease, clubs have gone into financial difficulties with most of them failing to pay salaries of players and officials. A few of the clubs have also bargained with the players to slash their monthly income.

Clubs in Ghana solely depend on gate fees as greatest source of income and with football still on suspension due to the coronavirus, they are struggling to meet their financial obligations as they do not have any plan B or other sources of funding.

Arthur – who is the MTN FA Cup chairman has challenged the clubs to be innovative amid the COVID-19 induced hardship as his club is considering starting Skyy FC Farms.

“By way of funding and financial preparation Skyy FC would consider starting SKYY FARMS,” he told Skyy FM.

“A lot of the vegetables takes few months to harvest, so if I got the resources, I wouldn’t mind cultivating a rice farm making sure I have enough of rice to cater for my team for the entire season

“We have to be innovative, by breaking down the cost of running teams into parts.

“For example if you have a team bus,you can work on fuel sponsorship, you can even do food and beverage sponsorship, water sponsorship, so you can part your expenditure into parts and get bits of sponsors for all, to ease the burden of club financing.

“This is very important because they way and manner business is moving in this COVID 19 situation it would be difficult to get one big sponsor to absorb all your cost, so this is the time to be very innovative.”