Ugly disappointment, painful exit!

Kotoko's bench was dejeected after the 2-1 loss to Eulma.

Spectacular failure. Embarrassing show. Ugly disappointment, culminating in a painful exit. These were some of expressions commentators at the Baba Yara Sports Stadium used to briefly describe what unfolded beneath their eyes on Sunday when Kotoko lost 1-2 to Algeria’s MC El Eulma in the CAF Champions League, 1/16th stage, return encounter.

Kotoko had drawn goalless in the first leg in Eulma. The expectation was simply that, the Porcupines will win at home for advance. They rather stunned their fans with a miserable display that left the thousands of fans at the packed venue bitterly disappointed. It was third time in succession that Kotoko had failed to not just excel in Africa but also gone past the second preliminary round of the CAF Champions League.

Indeed, and rather painfully too, Sunday April 5, 2015 was yet another time since 2013 that, Kotoko struggled against an unknown African opponent and ended up being overpowered. If history has anything worth recalling, Kotoko have one in African club football. Recent developments are however showing that, the current team either does not know that history or something fundamentally is wrong with the team hence the sequential failures in Africa.

In 2013, it was JSM Bejaia – an Algeria side with barely no experience in Africa. Kotoko drew goalless away and surprisingly drew 1-1 at home. They crashed out. In 2014, against a relatively young team from Liberia, Barrack Young Controllers, Kotoko laboured to win 2-1 in Kumasi and subsequently lost 1-0 in the Liberian capital, Monrovia. Sunday was no different.

Against a side that, Kotoko had drawn goalless in their backyard three weeks ago; against a side that are struggling in their domestic league and against a side whose participation in the Champions League only happened by fortune, Kotoko disappointed once again. How Kotoko could lose, not even draw with some form of dignity intact, was something I couldn’t fathom.

Not that I don’t understand football’s illogicalities. Not that, I don’t know that apart from winning, a team either draws or loses in this game. I know all that. I also know that, all Kotoko needed was a win. The players knew that as well. Their knowledge was however distant from the eventual outcome. The over the 30,000 fans all left with enormous pain; sad and dejected.

The magnitude of work done by management to get the fans to fill the stadium most definitely has suffered a setback. Losing 1-2 to Algeria’s MC El Eulma is just unacceptable. From start to finish, until the Algerians scored their second goal in the 94th minute, which worsened matters for Kotoko, hopes of Kotoko winning was still high. The bright way in which Kotoko started the game painted a good picture by the end of regulation time, not knowing it was but a mirage.

Eulma wasn’t good. Kotoko just gave them too much comfort. The early incursions launched on Eulma early in the game were fine but as the game progressed with Kotoko not scoring, Eulma steadily grew in confidence. Then the deadlock was broken. Obed Owusu capitalized on a weak back pass from a defender to his goalie to put Kotoko in the lead five minutes from the break.

The nearly packed stadium erupted with joy. Kotoko lacked the sense of urgency to respond to the supporters’ call. It was if some of the players didn’t know what was at stake. Some could walk slothfully for throw-ins when only a solitary goal separated Kotoko from Eulma. That lethargic approach proved too expensive.

Eulma equalized 16 minutes inside the second half. It didn’t really mark the end of the road for Kotoko. The fans despite being jolted, cheered the team. That the spectators, usually known for not showing such love in the face of imminent defeat, this time exhibited unflinching support, suggested that, they wanted nothing but the best for Kotoko. They were however let down.

With two minutes to exhaust the six minutes added on by the referee, Eulma scored. The die was cast. What a painful anticlimax, a commentator called it! Literally, Kotoko drove a red-hot knife excruciatingly through the hearts of their fans. Only time would heal the wounds suffered by the fans who traveled from all over Ghana to watch the game.