2025/26 Ghana Premier League: Week 21 Match Preview – Heart of Lions vs Asante Kotoko

Heart of Lions head coach Bashir Hayford will come up against his former club Asante Kotoko on Saturday in a compelling Ghana Premier League clash, with both sides in need of maximum points.

Hayford has not hidden his disappointment with recent performances, regularly voicing concerns over his players’ consistency. He will expect a strong reaction against Kotoko, a club with which he enjoyed success, winning the league title in 2008. Last season, Hayford guided Lions to a second-place finish, but the current campaign has been far more challenging. With 14 matches still to play, they trail the league leaders by 16 points, a reflection of costly dropped points.

Heart of Lions enter the fixture under pressure following a narrow defeat to Bechem United, their seventh loss of the season. That result extended a poor run of form, with just one win in their last ten league matches, alongside three draws and six defeats, the weakest sequence in the division. Lions sit seventh on the table with 27 points from 20 games, eight points off the top four, having scored 18 goals and conceded 16.

Their home form offers some encouragement. Lions have won six of their nine matches at Kpando this season, drawing one and losing two. They recently ended a three-game home winless run and will be keen to secure successive home victories for the first time since November.

Kotoko travel to Kpando buoyed by a convincing 3-0 win over Basake Holy Stars last weekend, which ended a three-match winless run and marked their first victory of the second round. Kotoko are second with 35 points, boasting 27 goals scored and only 11 conceded, and will aim to maintain pressure on leaders Medeama.