Asante Kotoko coach Karim Zito has praised his players after their spirited comeback to lift the 2025 Champion of Champions title.
The Porcupine Warriors endured a poor run in the 2025 GHALCA Top 4 tournament, losing all three matches against Bibiani GoldStars, Heart of Lions, and Hearts of Oak.
However, Kotoko bounced back in style on Sunday at the DUNs Park, edging out Premier League champions Bibiani GoldStars 1-0 to claim the trophy, with Musa Hamzata scoring the decisive second-half goal.
Reflecting on their struggles in the Top 4, Zito attributed the dip in form to the team’s congested schedule, which denied his players the needed recovery period.
“I told you before, the GHALCA Tournament, the timing was very bad for us, not for the other clubs. Because when you look at our schedules, immediately after the league, we played the FA, we played the President Cup, and then we travelled. All this while, other clubs were resting,” he explained.
He added that Kotoko were still in the early stages of pre-season during the Top 4, a factor that contributed to errors and slow play.
“So, we were in the basic phase of the pre-season or complex phase of the pre-season when we started playing matches. Definitely, I wasn’t expecting something too good from my boys. If you look at the goals conceded, you will see that the majority came from minor mistakes by defenders or set-pieces. It tells you that not all the clubs were ready. But against Hearts of Oak, you could see that my boys were now picking up.”
Despite the early setbacks, Zito maintained confidence in his team, a belief that was rewarded with the Champion of Champions victory.
“I told them, look, I trust you, I know what you can do. We can go and win the Champion of Champions here. And there’s one thing I kept on saying, you can’t beat Zito twice. For that, I am sure.”
The win also serves as a morale booster for Kotoko ahead of the upcoming domestic season and CAF interclub competitions. Bibiani GoldStars will face Algeria’s JS Kabylie, while Kotoko prepare for a clash against Nigeria’s Kwara United in the preliminary round.
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