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Former Ghana international Charles Kwaku Asampong Taylor believes courage and boldness will be the watchword ahead of the outstanding Ghana Premier League fixture between Ghana's two most successful - Asante Kotoko and Hearts of Oak - sides at the Accra sports stadium.
Taylor, who is more than qualified to share his opinion of the 'Real Madrid vs Barcelona' equivalent fixture owing to his vast experience on the local terrain, has waded into the discussion of who carries the day between the two rival clubs.
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FootballCharles affectionately called the 'Terror Taylor' during his playing days due to his bewitching dribbling skills, remains one of the few players to have featured for both Asante Kotoko and Hearts of Oak and believes the former will edge the latter in what promises to be a cagey encounter.
Speaking to Kumasi-based radio station Akoma 87.9 FM, the native of Sefwi in the Western North region intimated new signing Sulley Muntari could tweak the results in favour of the Phobians despite rooting for Kotoko.
"The era when Hearts won games [against Kotoko] with poor form is over,"
"Sule [and Razak] could be game-changers for Hearts. It's a nostalgic feeling during these times. How I wish I could play again? I would have loved to wear the Kotoko jersey and play against Hearts."
Contrary to the cliche that games between Hearts and Kotoko don't necessarily follow the form guide, Taylor suggests the form of the Kumasi-based giants could be too hot for the defending league champions.
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Football"You need courage and boldness to excel in Kotoko vs Hearts games. Even though many people say that such games are won or lost devoid of form, I [still] think form plays a role at times."
The former Premier League top scorer contends the results of the game could largely be determined by the red-hot Cameroonian imports Georges Mfegue and Frank Mbella Etouga, who is currently leading the top scorer's chart in the country with 11 goals.
"On the basis for form, you can say Kotoko will win, The two Cameroonians [Etouga and Mfegue] will be crucial for Kotoko. They make half chances count,"
"Hearts will come with aggression but I believe if any of the sides will win, it will be Asante Kotoko." Taylor ended
The Porcupine Warriors, are currently perched at the summit of the league log, have recorded three wins in their last five games and will be looking to take advantage of the stop-start form of their archenemy especially as they seek to avenge last season's defeat at the same venue as well as stretch their stranglehold at the summit of the log.
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FootballEarlier, Sports Brief reported that a resilient performance from Elmina Sharks saw the side cruising past Asante Kotoko with a vital 2-1 victory.
Since the start of the 2021/22 Ghana Premier League season, the team from Elmina has struggled to compete.
As a result, the club is one of the three teams at the bottom of the league table fighting to avoid relegation at the end of the campaign.