Kosta Papic leaving his duty as head coach of Hearts of Oak just 78 days after his appointment hints a possible crisis period for the Phobians.

The Accra-based club are winless in their last four games and currently sit out of the top 10 in the league with 13 games played.

Currently, Hearts are closer to the relegation zone (3 pts) than leaders Karela United (8) in the Ghana Premier League this season.

Therefore, it is not far-fetched to say the Phobians could see themselves in a relegation scrap at the end of the season.

For a club that hadn’t won the league title for more than 10 years, something had to be done differently to get back to the top.

Proper planning and execution is how big clubs usually rise from slumps. Unfortunately, that hasn’t been the case for Hearts.

Nii Odoom took charge of the club on an interim basis in December 2019 following the sacking of Kim Grant.

It was no secret Hearts wanted a new coach heading into the 2020/21 season. Carlos Manuel Vaz Pinto was appointed but left just 7 days after.

Hearts then had to stick to Odoom with just two weeks to the start of the season as the search for a new coach continued. A couple of weeks into the new season, Hearts of Oak appointed Kosta Papic.

There was a good feeling as Papic brought new energy to the club. When Hearts beat the then table toppers Bechem United 6-1, it looked as if they might just challenge for the title. Unfortunately, the club went on to win just one game in the six.

It’s reported Papic wasn’t happy with the board to and the Serbian describes the situation at the club as “I have no hope that it’s going to change.” If the man who masterminded your last league title says these words then you should know there is big trouble.

The relegation battle looks like an unusual one with clubs such as Berekum Chelsea, AshGold, Sharks, Liberty and Legon Cities around the drop.

These clubs do have what it takes to climb up and are gradually building momentum. Hearts are sinking and sinking pretty fast. In a week, they’ve lost their head coach, assistant coach Asare Bediako and goalkeeper’s trainer George Owu.

The team will be now coached by U-15 coach, Samuel Nii Noi. That makes it three coaches in the space of just 13 games.

Players are demotivated and with the lack of a structure evident now, a relegation battle for Hearts might become reality at the end of this season.