Asante Kotoko legend Frimpong Manso has voiced concerns about the pressure faced by players who joined the club from lower divisions.

Manso's remarks come in the wake of Kotoko's challenging previous season, where they finished sixth in the Ghana Premier League, trailing champions Samartex by 12 points.

Manso highlighted that the high expectations at Kotoko, where the pressure to win every match is intense, proved overwhelming for many of the new recruits.

He noted that players coming from Division Two and Division One struggled to adapt to the demanding environment.

“In the previous season, Kotoko brought in a new batch of players, mostly from Division Two and some from Division One.

At Kotoko, there’s always the expectation to win every game,” Manso told Joy Sports. “The pressure on coaching Kotoko is significant, and some of the new players couldn’t handle it, which affected their performance.”

He also pointed out issues within the squad, including conflicts with coach Prosper Ogum. “Some of the older players had issues with Prosper.

He even mentioned that some players were more involved in politics than football, leading to a lot of them being released at the end of the season.”

Manso concluded by noting that the previous season's circumstances were not conducive for success and that the club is now looking to start afresh.

Asante Kotoko has since released over 20 players and signed eleven new ones, and the team has commenced preseason training.

They are preparing for their opening match of the new season against Karela United in early September.