Asante Kotoko stunned by Medeama in Ghana Premier League

Asante Kotoko suffered a home defeat in the Ghana Premier League by a 2-1 defeat to Medeama in Obuasi on Saturday.

Emmanuel Gyamfi scored first for the Porcupine Warriors but replies from Prince Opoku and Richard Boadu for the Yellow and Mauves handed the visitors full points in the matchday 21 fixture at the Len Clay Stadium.

This was their first defeat in Obuasi since moving base from Accra for the second round of the competition, and Kotoko have lost first position on the league table to Medeama who were fourth coming into the tie.

Kotoko coach Mariano Barreto made two changes to the side that started against Great Olympics in the previous games.

Brazilian attacker Fabio Gama Dos Santos returned to the XI after serving a suspension while Augustine Okrah was similarly restored to the team after recovering from an injury.

Medeama, on the other hand, had to do without Ghana midfielder Justice Blay, who sustained an injury while playing against Legon Cities on the previous matchday.

Unlike Blay who missed a chance to face former side Asante Kotoko, Burkina Faso striker Amed Toure had the opportunity but could only do so from the bench.

Kotoko broke the deadlock in the 13th minute of the game through Gyamfi who headed into the bottom corner after Ibrahim Imoro delivered a cross into the box.

On the half-hour mark, Medeama hit back as Opoku capitalised on loose defensive marking inside the box to shoot into the bottom left corner.

Seven minutes later, Medeama could have gone 2-1 up had Opoku not seen his header narrowly miss the target.

On the stroke of half-time, the Yellow and Mauves found a way to take the lead as Boadu’s shot deflected off a Kotoko defender to find its way into the net.

Back after the interval, both teams failed to find their scoring boots as the referee whistled to bring the game to an end after six minutes of injury time.

In the second GPL game on Saturday, Liberty Professionals registered a 2-0 home win over Berekum Chelsea, thanks to goals from Abraham Wayo and Amadu Awudu.

The Scientific Soccer Lads have moved up to 14th on the table while Chelsea occupy ninth position.

In a late Saturday kick-off, 13th spotted Ebusua Dwarfs will host third-placed Olympics in Cape Coast.