Asante Kotoko head coach Eric Tinkler admits his side made their victory over Heart of Lions unnecessarily difficult but was pleased to secure all three points.
The Porcupine Warriors faced a determined Heart of Lions side that created several opportunities during the contest, particularly despite being reduced to 10 men.
Tinkler acknowledged the quality of their opponents but praised his players for managing the game and creating opportunities of their own.
“We made things very difficult for ourselves. You can see Heart of Lions are a good team; they created chances, but we managed the game, and we created our chances,” Tinkler said.
The South African coach, however, admitted that Kotoko still have significant defensive work to do after struggling to control the game even against 10 men.
“Overall, there is still a lot of work we have to do defensively. We struggled even when we played against 10 men. We won ugly, but we will take the three points and move on.”
The result gives Kotoko valuable points, but Tinkler will expect his team to improve defensively as the season progresses.
