Executive Governor of Imo State, Senator Hope Uzodinma, has released about N120m to enable Heartland offset a backlog of unpaid salaries to their players and officials, Completesports.com can exclusively report.
The five-time Nigeria domestic top flight winners had been enmeshed in financial setback leading to unpaid arrears of six months contractual entitlents owed the players, coaches and management personnel.
The development had brought in its wake low spirit and dwindling performance on the part of the players as the club currently languish in the 19th position in the league table with seven points from a possible 30 points accruable from 10 matches.
Heartland have lost all five consecutive games, shipping in an embarrassing 12 goals while scoring just one. On matchday six, they surrendered the three points to Abia Warriors in Umuahia following a 1-0 defeat.
Their fortunes further plumated at home following an incredible 3-0 defeat by Coal City Flying Antelopes, Enugu Rangers, at the Dan Anyiam Stadium, Owerri.
As if that was not enough heartbreak for the two time CAF Champions League losing finalists, Rivers United, who pride themselves as ‘Pride of Rivers’, compounded the harpless Naze Warriors’ woes with a 3-1 thrashing in a matchday eight (8) fixture in Port Harcourt.
The league woes appear to know no bounds as Kano Pillars came, saw and conquerred 1-0 in Owerri, a result that became too hard for coach Hassan Abubakar to take, hence his decision to step down from his exalted managerial role in the club.
With a stopgap manager, Christian Obi, a former Nigeria international in charge, Heartland recorded their worst result in recent times when they were thumped 4-0 by Shooting Stars Sports Club, 3SC in a matchday 10 fixture in Ibadan at the weekend.
Heartland’s plight was not made any better by the League Management Company, LMC, organisers of the Nigeria Professional Football League, NPFL, who ordered the club to ensure the complete settlement of the players and coaches’ six months salaries or risk six points deduction and a further sanction of automatic demotion to the lower second tier league, Nigeria National League, NNL.
Apparently, in a race against time and tide, His Excellency, Governor Hope Uzodinma, promptly approved the release of funds to enable the club pay the players, coaches and staff’s arrears of their contractual entitlements.
The club’s officials are understood to be working round the clock, computing the affected players, coaches and staff’s salaries within the period with a view to ensure payment next week.
Completesports.com tried severally to get in touch with the General Manager of the club, Promise Nwachukwu, himself an ex junior international, but response from his mobile phone had remained ‘switched off’.
However, an official of Heartland FC told Completesports.com that they were working hard to ensure that the players’ bank accounts are credited next week. He admitted that the funds approved by the Governor is over N120m.
“The cause of the problem is the fact that the club is not being subvented by the government,”the official revealed.
“If the club had been subvented, it would have been in a better position to pay the players and take care of some issues and this accumulation of debts wouldn’t have arisen. Besides, we had a coach who laid off all our experienced players in preference to ‘inexperienced’ young players.
“This is one of our biggest challenges. But now that he has left, we are going to redress the situation as we await the mid season transfer to bolster the squad,” the official said.
Heartland will welcome newly promoted Gombe United in one of the 2021/2022 NPFL matchday 11 fixtures at the Dan Anyiam Stadium, Owerri, hoping to end their five match winless streak.
