Accra Hearts of Oak thrashed Berekum Chelsea 3-1 to secure second place in the BetPawa Premier League after two consecutive winless games in the 2022-2023 season.
Slavko Matic had a strong season, and there have been reports in Ghanaian media that the Board and Management of Hearts of Oak had given him an ultimatum of four matches to prove himself at the club.
Slavko failed to win against Legon Cities in their last home game, which he lost to Real Tamale United (R.T.U.) in week 16 of the season, so a win against Berekum takes off the pressure that started to mount on the coach.
The triumph over Berekum Chelsea was not surprising, according to a report obtained, which prompted senior players within the team to hold a meeting to change the fortunes at the Accra Sports Stadium.
Hearts of Oak defeated Berekum Chelsea in Accra for their seventh victory of the 2022–23 Ghana Premier League season thanks to a strong second-half performance.
Hearts of Oak put on a strong performance under the direction of Coach Slavko Matic, hoping to get a victory to make up for their disappointing 1-0 loss to Real Tamale United in their previous game.
Coach Slavko Matic made changes to the lineup that lost to Real Tamale United last weekend, starting Konadu Yiadom, Gladson Awako, and newly-signed attacker Albert Diego Eonde.
Hearts of Oak dominated the first half, putting intense pressure on the visitors for the opening goal, but their efforts were in vain. Gladson Awako’s close-range shot for the Phobians in the 27th minute nearly led to the first goal, but veteran goalkeeper Ernest Sowah stopped it.
In the 38th minute, Cameroonian striker Albert Diego Eonde came close to scoring his first goal for the Phobians, but Sowah calmly stopped his hard shot.
Hearts of Oak’s defence robbed Berekum Chelsea’s forwards, allowing the first half to end in a scoreless draw. Berekum Chelsea tried their luck with Stephen Amankona and Mezack Afriyie in the final ten minutes of the first half.
Following the break, Hearts of Oak controlled the ball and applied constant pressure to Berekum Chelsea’s defence.
Eventually, the visitors’ pressure paid off when Zakaria Fuseini unintentionally scored his own goal. Victor Aidoo and Benjamin Yorke scored goals as the game was coming to a close to give Hearts of Oak the win. Kusi Pandrous scored a late consolation goal for Berekum Chelsea.
