Head coach of Asante Kotoko, CK Akunnor, has admitted his side was outplayed by rivals Hearts of Oak, despite their triumph.
The Porcupine Warriors beat old foes The Phobians on penalties by 4-5 in the semi-finals of the NC Special Competition on Sunday at the Accra Sports Stadium.
“It was a very difficult game but the boys showed character and fought hard,” Akunnor told Kumasi-based Metro FM Wednesday.
“It was a difficult game because we couldn’t hold the ball and had to chase for it but our defensive set up was very organized,” he added.
“Hearts of Oak kept playing the ball but they weren’t clinical upfront. We showed the spirit of winning and was a bit lucky. Our defense and Danlard was very good enough on the day,” Akunnor admitted.
“’We didn’t go to sit back, but we wanted to press them and use their width (weakness). There were a lot of space if you look at the goal we scored. We closed them and didn’t give them space to score.
“Yacouba, Senanu and Baako are all injured so we had to build the team around the boys available. We suffered because Hearts kept possession well and we were just running and had to chase for the ball.
”Most of the players had played against Hearts before so experience also helped us a lot. Only Danlard and Evans had little experience,” Akunnor remarked.
Kotoko will play against Ashgold at the nation’s capital, Accra, in the semi – finals of the Ghana Football Association Normalization Committee tier two cup.
By Delrand Ansah Mensah Whyte (SKIPPER) for Daily Mail GH
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