Hearts of Oak played ‘fixed’ matches to survive - Charles Taylor reveals

Former Hearts of Oak playmaker Charles Taylor has made a scandalous claim that they were sometimes made to throw away games during his time at the club because of financial challenges.

In an interview with Kumasi FM, Taylor shockingly alleged that the playing body in his days were owed bonuses which had become a financial burden on management to pay.

To some extent the mountain of unpaid bonuses pushed management to get players to play certain matches soft, so the club loses and prevent adding to the already unpaid bonuses and entitlements.

Taylor, undoubtedly one of the greatest players to ever play the Ghana premier league was a key member of the famous “64 Battalion” squad of Accra Hearts of Oak S.C. that won the African Champions League in 2000 and consecutive Ghanaian league titles.

Such comprehensive was their dominance that, subsequent Hearts of Oak squads have struggled to replicate the feats they chalked.

However, Taylor’s claim is likely to dent their reputation and achievements.

Taylor who also played for Asante Kotoko told Kumasi FM, “During our time at Hearts of Oak, we were sometimes told to lose games because of unpaid accumulated bonuses.

“They will tell us to lose the game because there is no money to pay us,” he shockingly claimed.

It remains to be seen the sort of response this will generate from the Hearts of Oak family.