Hearts of Oak goalkeeper Seidu Mutawakilu has underplayed the importance of Monday’s game with Asante Kotoko.
Ghana’s two most glamorous sides will square off at the Accra Sports Stadium on Monday in the biggest game on the local calendar.
But young goalie Mutawakilu says the players cannot afford to buy into the hype of the game.
“This is the biggest game in Ghana but our mentality for the match is that we are taking it like any ordinary game,” Mutawakilu confessed.
“We are doing that because once you try to add significance or assess the magnitude of the game, it will be difficult for you so we are taking it as another league game because the game will be played in 90 minutes and we will have to take our chances to get a good result.”
The former national U20 goalkeeper has had more highs than lows since he switched to the capital from rivals Asante Kotoko.
Mutawakilu was between the sticks when Hearts beat Kotoko in Kumasi by a lone goal last season, but he is yet to fully convince the teeming fans of the club of his true potential.
“In life everything happens for a reason,” the young goalie admits of his on-and-off Hearts career.
“I know my potential before I joined Hearts and I have also seen how things have panned out since I joined the club but whatever happens is by God’s will. So I am not looking back on what has happened in the past but I am looking at the future and I am optimistic that I will continue to improve and fulfill my true potential.
“Goalkeeping is not easy especially for young players because even world-class keepers do make mistakes, but it depends on who you get to back you. If you get a good mentor who is willing to back you to the hilt, you can easily push forward and come out of bad patches, and I am getting encouragement from the team and I am on course.
“Aside the normal things you see on the field from goalkeepers, I think that position involves a lot of things especially psychology. I think the best you can get is the psychological support. ‘Hey, you can do it. Go, do it,’ that sort of encouragement can lift a goalkeeper all the time and that’s the best in goalkeeping in my opinion.
“I am biding my time; I am not in a hurry or rush. But I know at the right time and opportune moment, I will rise to the occasion for Ghana and Accra Hearts of Oak.”