Voice Sports understands that the management of Hearts of Oak have been in contact with former Orlando Pirates coach Kostadin ‘Kosta’ Papić to take over the club for the second round of the Ghana Premier League.
This is anticipation of a decision to sack current boss Kenichi Yatsuhashi due to perceived “insubordination and worsening club form”.
Papić was in charge of the Phobians in 2008/9 league season – the last time they won the league, although he only started the campaign and Nii Noi Thompson finished it – is being offered $5000 a month.
The Serbian, however, wants close to $8,500.
The board of the club meets later on Thursday to seal the fate of the Japanese-American trainer who has rapidly fallen out with management but remains wildly popular with fans.
If Hearts appoint Kosta, it will complete an ironic picture drawn over seven years. The former Orlando Pirates manager was similarly popular with Hearts fans in 2009, but left following a series of bad results.
He had been leading the league right from the second round when, suddenly, Hearts lost three straight games and management felt he was not good enough. Assisted by club legend Sam Johnson, Kosta constantly complained about interference from the club management – just as Kenichi has done this season.
In fact, just as it happened this season, Kosta had blasted the management for not paying players on time, which he said was a demotivation as the Phobians chased their 20th league title.
In one of the key meetings before Kosta’s sack, Frank Nelson was present, just as he is expected to be present when Yatsuhashi’s fate is decided on Thursday.
And, before he left by mutual consent (some say he was sacked) in August 2009, the Serbian predicted that Hearts will never win a league title if they don’t “give a coach time, patience and freedom to think about the team and not distract him with useless matters”.
He could not have been more correct, as the Accra giants still await an elusive title after that season.
More to follow…
