Citi Sports editor Nathan Quao rolls out his column on another Monday and this week, he talks about Aduana’s capture of the Ghana Premier League, the talk surrounding Man United’s goalless draw at Anfield and Roger Federer’s superior handling of Rafa Nadal in Shanghai.
All hail Aduana, new kings of Ghanaian football
When Aduana Stars started assembling very good pieces from last season, the talk was that they were getting ready to win the Ghana Premier League.
Noah Martey was purchased from Bechem United while Zakaria Mumuni joined from WAFA. The likes of Derrick Sasraku and Godfred Saka were maintained together with Daniel Darkwah and that meant that you had a solid base and a good mix of new players; the right mix for a Premier League challenge and they duly delivered.
They went unbeaten until Week 8 and maybe that was why their coach Yusif Abubakar said that he knew they would win the title.
The performance, in my opinion, which underlined their seriousness was the 3-3 draw with Hearts of Oak in Accra. The refereeing on the day from Prince Amoah was very dodgy but Aduana took the lead three times in that game and they played without any fear.
A closer look at the statistics reveals just how well they set themselves up for the title.
They lost none of their home matches and they have lost only four of their 14 away matches played so far (the 15th is at AshGold on final day). Their away record produced only 18 out of 45 points but those points were a very healthy buffer for the 12 home games they won.
Clearly, they knew their way round the league and they worked for their title.
WAFA could have made it tougher but a lack of ambition, at least in my mind, shown by their head coach Klavs Rasmussen took the league away from them.
With Bolga All Stars already relegated, the fight for survival has become more important for the 8 teams lying between 8th and 15th place.
They are separated by just 3 points and any failures on final day could sink any two of them. Things just got hotter!!!
Jose Smart or Jose Scared at Anfield?
By 1:30 pm on Saturday October 14, the debate surrounding the match between Liverpool and Manchester United had been broken into two very distinct camps.
One camp said that Joe Mourinho should have gone for the victory against the old enemy. The Liverpool defence had been poor and they did not have Sadio Mane and thus, staying compact was not ambitious enough.
The other camp believed that the point was good for a season of 38 matches. They stated that the battle was long and arduous and so, a point gained at a team that knows how to play the big games and will slaughter your team if you attempt exchanging blows with it is important.
Both camps hold very valid stances but I go with the second group. Liverpool love this match and they were primed to deliver the death blow had Man United tried to go gung-ho at them.
Of course, Man United could have attempted to build more as the game wore on and they could have been rewarded but Liverpool did not also let themselves go completely. They always had their midfield in place because for once, they recognised their shortcomings and they did not also want to risk getting sucker-punched.
Is that also not self-preservation? Man United have rarely dominated Liverpool at Anfield. They have played on the counter and they have saved themselves from defeat so many times.
Only 15 goals were scored in Sir Alex Ferguson’s last 16 trips to Liverpool. Jose Mourinho is not the first Man United to think about not losing. A point gained will be handy later.
The Federer Express delivered in Shanghai
It has been a great year for both Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. Like phoenixes, the two men have risen from injury to go past every one and their latest meeting in the Shanghai Rolex Masters on Sunday stressed the great form they were both in.
But the match and the year’s subscription of gloating belonged to Roger Federer.
I saw him win the Australian Open early this year and I wondered if he could keep going. He has done so and Sunday’s showing was even more dominant. He won 6-4, 6-3 and recorded ten aces while doing so.
Federer, in his older years, has played with a lot of calmness and focus. He does not overfuss in his decision-making and the shot selection is even more exquisite.
No one knows if he will win a lot of major titles in coming years because Novak Djokovic will return and Nadal seems to have the aggression and determination to want to keep going.
But Federer, on Sunday, reminded all of us that with proper planning and great choices in terms of tournament, he could win a few more before calling it a day.
Notable mention to Mauro Icardi.
(Image credit: Getty Images)
I am not a huge fan of Inter Milan’s Argentine captain but overlooking his performance in the Milan Derby on Sunday will be very wrong.
He gave a very good shift and like all great strikers, he got his goal. Infact, he got three; my favourite being his improvised sliced volley from Ivan Perisic (who I think Man United should have signed) to make the score 2-1.
Great workout ahead of Inter’s clash with Napoli next weekend. I am not missing that one.
That’s it for this week, folks.
Hit me up on Twitter @nathan_quao