By: Jerome Otchere

Date: 08-04-2011

Kotoko’s cleansing act, that is removing all the ‘dirt’ that characterised their performance in the first half of this season appears to be going well especially after the 13-12 emotionally gripping penalty shootouts against Aduana Stars in the MTN FA Cup on Wednesday evening.

And this Sunday again at the Baba Yara Sports Stadium, Coach Bogdan Korak and his charges will have another high and perfect platform to exhibit a more convincing show when they engage city rivals King Faisal in the week 23 fixture of the Glo Premier League,.

In Sunday’s local derby, there will be no penalty kicks after regulation time. The players also have to be reminded that they will not be spared criticism if they fail not only to keep their composure to the end but also clinch the vital three maximum points at stake.

King Faisal shocked Kotoko in the first round tie played last year when they struck three times before Kotoko fetched a consolation to end the match 3-1.

That was when Kotoko’s turbulent times started. With pragmatic management and technical decisions however, the situation at Kotoko has changed significantly – which means King Faisal who conversely are struggling this time around, will not be able to run over the Porcupines like they did in the first round.

King Faisal is currently experiencing difficult times, battling with three other clubs – RTU, Mighty Jets and B. A. Stars in the lower ranks of the league table should not lead Kotoko into any state of delusion.

The reason is simple. Alhaji Karim Grunsah’s team even in a poor, miserable shape is very hard to beat particularly by Asante Kotoko. The Porcupines fortunately go into Sunday’s game with exceptional confidence having won all their perceived tough battles over the last one month.

Coach Bogdan Korak’s team is still intact. Ohene Brenya, returning for a troubling knee condition will find it very hard to beat the high flying John Kuffour to a starting place.

With no stiffer competition yet coming from goalkeeper George Arthur, Isaac Amoako will again maintain his number one spot but Amoako has to be more careful.

He must know exactly when to come out of his post since his blunder last Wednesday night to a larger extent armed Aduana Stars to scare Kotoko.

Yaw Frimpong, Prince Anokye Awal Mohammed and John Kuffour are all poised to keep their game at the back tidy.

A lot of creativity must therefore come from Michael Akuffu, Nii Adjei, Frank Boateng and Fatawu Mohamed to feed the attack purposefully.

An Alex Asamoah and Ahmed Toure pair is being anticipated but Alex Asamoah needs a lot more pep talk on his positioning vis-ŕ-vis the offside trap in order to make his contributions to the game more useful.

A larger crowd – definitely much bigger than what was seen on Wednesday evening is expected at the stadium. If you are a fan either of Kotoko or King Faisal, believe that you will have your money’s worth this Sunday if you show up at the match, given the rivalry between the two teams in addition to Kotoko’s unshakeable resolve to pay King Faisal back in their own coin.

It is payback time. By virtue of their current form, Kotoko are favourites to win. They will however have to work hard to dismiss their opponents’ bluff at the end of the day.