This is an extract from a famous newspaper in Ghana within the 1990s.
NEWS of Ghanaian forward Kofi Ayew signing as a temporary replacement for Scott Ollerenshaw today could jolt the Sabah forwards into action as they face troubled Perak at Likas Stadium
Coach Ronald Smith should be elated to have a player of Ayew’s class at his disposal but the trio of Milomir Seslija, Jaya Kassim and Suharmin Yusof were occupying his mind yesterday.
The trio were subdued by a stout Negri Sembilan defence on Wednesday as the visitors clung on to a 1-1 draw to advance to the quarterfinals of the FA Cup next month on a 3-1 aggregate.
And they need to find a way to break through the Perak wall led by sweeper Khairul Anuar Baharum.
But with midfield support, Sabah should have no problems in defeating Perak to consolidate their position at the top of the table.
A repeat of the 5-0 win over Terengganu is far-fetched as Perak ooze class even if they
are far from the level that their coach Karl Weigang wants. Still, anything less than three points is not acceptable for Sabah. Since Ollerenshaw dislocated his elbow in the opening match against Malacca, Smith
has tried out several attacking variations. Against Negri, Seslija was given a central striking role, with Jaya Kassim on the right while Suharmin on the left.
However the trio were outwitted respectively by A. Ganeson, B. Rajnikandh and M. Balan on Wednesday.
If the midfield comprising Jekerison Kilan, Abdullah Awang Adi and Henry Soimpon can support Jaya and Suharmin on the flanks, then Khairul Anuar and company would face a tough time to stop Seslija.
With Madzalan Emoi, Burhan Ajui, Jelius Ating and Veselin Kovacevic proving very difficult to beat at home, Perak forwards Zlatko Vidan and Mat Zahir Wahab need more than their instinct to upset Sabah.
The youngest player in the League
GHANAIAN youth international Mafarah Kofi Ayew will sign a two-month contract with Sabah FA this morning in Kota Kinabalu.
He will be the replacement for injured striker Scott Ollerenshaw.
It is reliably learnt the decision was made yesterday evening in a meeting between Kofi, his agent and Sabah FA secretary Ansari Abdullah with the blessings of Sabah FA president Anifah Aman. Kofl will have options to continue playing if necessary. He is expected to get his international Transfer Certificate (ITC) in the next few days and play his first match against Penang away on May 3
Kofi, who stands at 1.98m and weighs 69kg. will be the youngest player in the competition at 16. He only turns 17 on Dec 13.
Kofi, who played for African Star and Seconisi XI in the Ghanaian First Division, has been trying to secure a contract in Europe the last three months.
While clubs like Enertieg Cottbus, 1816 Munich, FC Cologne in Germany and Ajax Amsterdam were impressed with him, their contracts were to play with their Junior teams for a season before considering him for
the senior team. But Kofi wants senior team exposure and that is why he came to Malaysia. Kofi is also glad he has landed a contract because this means there is a strong chance of him featuring for the Ghana youth team in the Junior World Cup in Malaysia starting on June 16.
Kofi, the younger brother of African Footballer of the Year, Abedi Pele Ayew, last played with the Ghana Junior team in December in a friendly match before he decided to venture into Europe,
Kofi, also has another brother, Kwame, playing in the Portuguese First Division. His position in the Ghana youth team was subject to him getting a contract because the coach wanted him to be active since he was not training with the team.
“Playing in Malaysia two months prior to the Youth World Cup will get me acclimatised. I will be an asset to the Ghana team,” said Kofi, an ardent fan of reggae star Bob Marley.
Kofi, who has a Ruud Gullit hairdo, has played 15 times with the Ghana junior team and scored seven goals.
He impressed Sabah FA officials when he scored four goals for the President’s Cup squad in a friendly against the West Coast Under-23 side on Thursday – Tony Mariadass.
Khairul: Consistently good performance
Perak have a good buy in Khairul
KHAIRUL ANUAR BAHARUM is fast proving to be Perak’s best buy this season.
Sweeper Khairul, signed from Kedah, has been putting up a consistently good performance.
Pointless Perak face champions Sahab at Likas Stadium today and Khairul will again be expected to stop the free-scoring forwards.
Khairul, normally a stopper, has been switched to play sweeper by coach Karl Weigang because of his height.
And Khairul is handling the new role well although Perak have lost both their league matches and are out of the FA Cup.
Cool Khairul is a difficult man to beat, especially with his timely tackles and good reading of the game. Weigang is quite happy with Khairul but there will be little
Khairul can do it alone, especially against a strikeforce that has scored 11 goals in three league matches.
The others who will man the defence today are Raja Azlan Soib, Chee Wan Hoe, Zainal Abidin Abu Bakar, Roslan Hamid and Chan Kok Heng. The Perak midfield must support the defence effectively to avoid
humiliation by Sabah. Tough tackling defensive midfielder Abu Bakar Fadzim is expected to return today after missing the FA Cup match against Terengganu last Tuesday.
The midfield has been rather disappointing and Weigang hopes to see Improvement in this department.
And of course, Weigang also hopes the Perak strikeforce led by Zlatko Vidan and Mat Zahir Wahab will at least get their first goal of the season. Mustapha Kamaruddin.