Former Black Stars head coach Herbert Addo has died after battling illness.
Addo, who has coached for four decades starting from his first job with Armed Forces Team S.S. 74 in the Old Ghana Division One league, passed on Friday afternoon.
He managed the Black Meteors (U23) (1981-82) and Black Satellites (U20) (1983-84) before graduating to the Black Stars (1983-86/87) and capping it off by winning the SWAG coach of the year award (1987).
The experienced coach also had a short stint with the Ghana Local Black Stars leading them in a CHAN tournament in 2010.
Herbert Addo won the Ghana Premier League on five occasions with four different clubs – and he remains the only coach to have achieved that feat in the history of the local game.
He won the league title with Asante Kotoko (1988), Goldfields S.C now Ashgold (1994/95 and 1995/96), Accra Hearts of Oak (2002), and Aduana Stars (2010).
The 66-year-old had stints with clubs like Accra Great Olympics (twice), Sekondi Hasaacas, Kumasi Cornerstone (where he won the WAFU Champions Cup in 1987), Goldfields (now Ashanti Gold), Asante Kotoko, Accra Hearts of Oak, Ghapoha, Okwahu United, Samartex FC, Gamba All Blacks, Pure Joy, Wassaman, and Inter Allies on his CV as clubs he has coached domestically.
On the continent, guided Shell FC in Gabon to win domestic cup – and Maranatha FC (Togo), but his most salient achievement in Africa came in the 1996/97 African Clubs Champions League when he led Goldfields to a heartbreaking penalty defeat in the finals.
Addo rejuvenated his career when he picked up the Inter Allies job in the 2013/14 season and led the club to safety after a poor start. He also led the debuting Allies to the finals of the FA Cup where he was beaten by his former club Asante Kotoko.
He left Inter Allies to Accra Hearts of Oak, where he led to the penultimate qualifying stage of the CAF Confederation Cup in the 2014/15 season.
The CAF license A coach returned to Inter Allies for the start of the 2016 campaign after parting ways with Accra Hearts of Oak.
Unrivaled Achievements:
Herbert Addo won the Ghana Premier League with the highest ever points tally in 2002. His Hearts side accumulated 78 points. They won a record 25 matches out of 30 games.
Herbert Addo is the only coach to provide two league top-scorers from the same team. He coached Charles Taylor and Dong Bortey to win the joint-goal King Award in 2002.
Herbert Addo is the only coach in Ghana football to lead a promoted side to a league triumph in their first season. He coached then league debutants Aduana Stars to the title in 2010, breaking the Hearts-Kotoko duopoly.
He also led Aduana to win the league with the least number of goals scored – a world record shared with a Swedish club.
Achievements:
1. MTN FA CUP finalist, Inter Allies F/C (first timers in the Premier League) – 2014
2. Premier League Champions, Aduana Stars F/C (first timers in the league) – 2010
3. Runners UP (league) Accra Hearts of Oak S.C (Unbeaten in 30 matches) – 2003
4. Premier League Champions, Accra Hearts of Oak S.C – 2002
5. African Clubs Champions League Finalist (runners-up), Goldfields S.C – 1996/97
6. Premier League Champions, Goldfields S.C – 1995/96 & 1996/97
7. African Cup Winners Cup quarter-finalists, Shell F.C Gabon – 1990/91
8. F.A Cup Champions Shell F.C (Gabon) – 1989/90
9. League Champions, Asante Kotoko F.C – 1988
10. WAFU Champions, Kumasi Cornestone F.C – 1987
11. Winners SCSA Zone III Tourney, Black Stars in Liberia – 1987
12. Winners SCSA Zone III Tourney, Black Stars in Ghana – 1986
13. Winners SCSA Zone III Tourney, Black Stars in Cote d’Ivoire – 1983
14. WAFU Cup Finalist, Hasaacas F.C – 1983
15. Shegu Shagari Cup, Ghana Meteors, Nigeria – 1982
16. Winners WAFU Cup, Hasaacas F.C – 1982
Personal Honours:
1. SWAG Coach of the Year – 1987
2. Best Coach (Ghana) Award – 2009/2010
3. Champions (Three Nation Liberia Independence Cup) – 2010.