Bechem United attacker Agustine Okrah has named Ibrahim Imoro of Kotoko as his best player in the 2021/22 Ghana Premier League season, with Hearts of Oak captain Mohammed Alhassan as his most outstanding defender.
Okrah, one of the season's most outstanding players who finished third in the league with 14 goals and also inspired his side to the MTN FA Cup final, said he rated the versatile Kotoko defender above other top-performing players because of his high attacking and recovery rates, qualities Imoro displayed during the season to propel Asante Kotoko to the league title with ease.
“Imoro was outstanding throughout the season, and for me, he was the best player. A defender with the speed of light, who can join attack when necessary with high recovery rate is rare. Besides helping his strikers to attack from all angles, he also assisted them to convert half-chances into goals. When it become necessary, he also scored to help his side overpower their opponents. This explains why I rate him as my best player of the season,” Okrah told th Graphic Sports.
For his best defender of the season, Okrah noted that he settled on the Hearts captain for his dexterity on the field and for his aerial prowess, adding that Alhassan was one of the defenders he found tough dealing with.
“Unlike some defenders that I handled very well, I almost always found it difficult to play against him, because he always tormented me anytime we met. His sense of timing was good and he robbed us of many 50/50 balls. He was also superior in the air by winning almost all aerial balls, tackled well to deny us some scoring opportunities,” he explained.
Okrah chose Bechem United's MTN FA Cup semi-final match against Obuasi-based AshantiGold, where his team came from behind to defeat AshantiGold 2-1 at the Len Clay Stadium, as his best match of the season.
“We were down by a lone goal at the first half, but during the break I told my colleagues in the dressing room that we could not lose the match at Obuasi so they should be prepared to put up a good fight in the second half. We, therefore, fired from all cylinders in the second half and scored two goals to qualify for the next stage of the competition. My performance in the match was outstanding, and moments afterwards, the technical team and management commended me so much for helping the team to defeat Ashgold in their backyard. I still remember that match as if it was played only yesterday,” he recalled.
He commended the management and technical team of Bechem United for offering him the platform to display his potential in football and gave an assurance to be committed to his career as his contribution to the development of Ghana football.