Yaw Preko Interim Head Coach of Accra Great Olympics has said his tactics against Hearts of Oak worked to perfection hence their 2-0 victory in the ‘Ga Mashie’ derby at the Accra Sports Stadium on Saturday.
A sublime free-kick from Captain Gladson Awako and perfectly placed strike by Maxwell Abbey ensured victory for the Wonder Club and moved them into the top four of the league standings.
According to the experienced coach, he had studied the play of Hearts in recent matches and decided to devise a different strategy other than the usual.
“We had a game plan for them and it worked. We decided to take the pressure of the boys in this derby game. I told them to relax and enjoy the game and come to the party, hit them in the first twenty minutes and we, fortunately, scored two goals within that time.
“I watched Hearts against Bechem and I realised they are more compact in the middle with the lateral wingers doing lots of runs, so I decided to play the back three and it works for us,” he said at a press conference.
When asked about what the win meant for him as a former player of Hearts, Preko responded, “I respect Hearts of Oak because I played for them and coached them as well and they do have a lot of quality players and always do want to possess the ball but my focus was to go into this match and do my job as a professional and I know what a derby is all about.”
He added, “It is a long season just like a marathon and winning this match is important as any other match so we have to go back to the drawing board and prepare for our next match.”
Great Olympics would face off against King Faisal on Wednesday at the Accra Sports Stadium and could go top with a win if results elsewhere favour them.
GNA
