By: Sheikh Tophic Sienu @desheikh1
I wouldn’t be taken aback if Dreams FC flatters to deceive in the upcoming Ghana Premier League. Yes I wouldn’t be surprised at all.
After watching the side succumb to a 4-1 defeat to giants Accra Hearts of Oak in a double-do friendly at the Theater of Dreams on Sunday, I thought I was seeing a different Dreams FC from the one I have been hearing of.
The first side lost 2-0 to Hearts in the opening game which lasted for 70 minutes while the second game ended 2-1 for the Phobians as well.
Yes, the Dreams FC that has introduced a lot of professionalism into the game that some of the household names in the league have not even gotten there, must yet to rise up to.
Yes the Dreams FC that has maximized opportunities in the media to make the club attractive to the world must rise up to it.
But the Dreams FC I saw on Sunday is way below the hype. If the playing body was just like the ‘talking body’, then the Ghana Premier League would have braced up for epic encounters at The Theater of Dreams, but the quality of the playing body does not match the quality of the ‘talking body’.
Watching the first game in which Hearts of Oak won by 2-0 courtesy goals from Isaac Oduro and Kwame Kizito, I was tempted to blame the field for the poor play but my conviction was defeated when the ‘main’ team also bowed to the Phobians by 2-1.
The quality of play was simply not the best as the players were struggling to piece their passes together. I struggled to count five complete passes from the ‘flamboyant’ Dreams FC team while Mustapha Essuman and Eric Kumi stole the show for the Phobians.
Honestly, Dreams FC did not live up to the DREAM of some of us. Perhaps we expected too much because of the hype the team has been given on air but if that is not the case, then am afraid Dreams FC may not survive the turbulence of the Ghana Premier League.
I foresee a difficult challenge for coach C.K Akonnor because it appears the materials at his disposal are not up to the standard that will survive the league.
Of course some of the players like Mozart Adjetey, Eric Gawu, Emmanuel Hayford, Godfred Asante, Abdul Bashiru and captain Leonard Owusu have the quality to live up to the billing but am scared that the hype is taking away the quality of the team.
People are measuring the quality of the team with the manner in which the name has been hyped and that is what I think can lead the team into danger.
Well, maybe the opposition from the Phobians was too heavy for the newcomers to carry, which is a possibility, but there are other teams that have even stronger forces than Hearts in the league.
I will be sad if Dreams FC goes back to the Division One League after the 2016 Ghana Premier League with their highly-admired professional attitude, but if serious measures are not out in place, they might laugh at the wrong side of their mouths at the end of the season.
Welcome to the Ghana Premier League DREAMS FC.