FC AshantiGold 04 chief executive Edward Kwasi Akuoko says repeated disagreements between head coach Karim Zito and assistant coach Ernest Okyere played a major role in the club’s decision to dismiss both men.
Akuoko said the club’s management had made several efforts to settle the dispute, including exploring a plan to place the coaches in separate roles. However, none of those attempts produced a lasting resolution.
“As professional as we are, we were worried about some friction that was reported between the head coach and the assistant. And at some times, we tried resolving the matters, but it wasn’t working,” he told Sports Daily on TV3.
The club considered keeping Zito as technical director while moving Okyere to its first division in pro sports. The proposal was intended to separate the two coaches while retaining their services in different capacities.
“I remember very well that at a point, we offered Coach Karim Zito the opportunity to just stay as a technical director, whilst Coach Ernest also shifted to our first division in pro sports. But it looks like the two were not willing to separate. They wanted to work together,” Akuoko said.
That arrangement was not accepted, and the problems continued whenever Zito and Okyere were required to work together.
“Unfortunately, any time we wanted them to work together, the frictions would come up again,” Akuoko added.
Despite the tensions, the chief executive praised both coaches and rejected any suggestion that their departures were linked to a lack of ability.
He described Zito as one of the leading coaches in Ghana and highlighted Okyere’s expertise in developing young players.
“Nobody can say that Coach Karim Zito is not competent. He’s arguably one of the best coaches we can have in Ghana. Coach Ernest is fantastic when it comes to youth development or youth football,” he said.
The comments provide further detail about FC AshantiGold 04’s decision to remove Zito, Okyere and goalkeeper trainer Robert Dabuo from their positions on October 27.
The dismissals followed a meeting of the club’s Interim Management Committee. FC AshantiGold 04 has since appointed a caretaker coach while it looks for a substantive head coach and technical director.