Bashir Hayford Laments Lions’ Sudden Dip as Title Push Slips Away
Heart of Lions head coach Bashir Hayford has openly questioned his side’s ability to arrest their worrying decline in form before the conclusion of the 2025/26 Ghana Premier League season.
Following Sunday’s narrow 1-0 defeat to Bechem United, which further stretched the Kpando-based club’s winless run, Hayford voiced deep frustration over a slump he admits has left him searching for answers.
“Unfortunately, the same coach, the same players, the same training sessions and the same everything, but all of a sudden it went off,” he told journalists. “We have tried and tried, but the same thing. It’s difficult.”
The downturn represents a dramatic shift from Lions’ impressive start to the campaign, when they suffered just a single defeat in their first 11 league matches and were firmly in the title conversation.
Since then, their momentum has evaporated. With only one win recorded in their last ten matches, Heart of Lions have slid down to seventh place on the league table, now trailing leaders Medeama SC by a daunting 16 points—effectively ending their championship hopes.
Despite continued efforts to steady the ship, Hayford admitted clarity has been hard to find.
“We are trying to get the answers. Maybe we will get it before the end of the season, or maybe next season,” he conceded.
Attention now turns to a stern test at home on Saturday, January 31, when Heart of Lions welcome league leaders Asante Kotoko. The fixture offers both a daunting challenge and a potential turning point for a side desperate to halt their slide and revive the promise of their early-season form.
