Former Accra Hearts of Oak striker, Charles Taylor, has lambasted Daniel Afriyie Barnieh for dragging his contract extension talks.

Charles Taylor claims that Afriyie Barnieh has not been exceptional to bluff and drag his feet in contract negotiation talks.

According to Taylor, the Black Galaxies skipper has had just one good season; hence, he should not behave like a top player.

“Afriyie Barnie should think twice because he is not even at that top level now to behave like he is big now on Hearts of Oak,” he told Sports Obama TV.

“We played for 6 good years, and Hearts of Oak benefits a lot from us, but you can’t say the same for Afriyei Barnie because he has only played three seasons for Hearts and is only in the last season that he was able to pick up, so he is not even at that top level to feel big on Hearts of Oak,” he added.

Taylor entreated Barnieh to reach an agreement with Hearts of Oak and not heed people who are advising him to do the opposite.

“He should sit with his family and also sit with Hearts of Oak to reach an agreement for both sides to benefit if not, the same people who are praising him now behind the scene, telling him not to extend his contract will be the same people to welcome him home when he failed to get much playing time in his new club.”

Afriyie Barnieh’s future at Hearts of Oak is up in the air, with conflicting reports on whether he will stay at the club or walk out.

On Thursday, December 8, 2022, reports surfaced in the media space that a meeting between Barnieh’s management and officials of Hearts of Oak ended in a deadlock.

According to the report, both factions agree that Barnieh has outgrown Hearts of Oak and needs to secure a move abroad, but the point of departure is how he will leave the club.

Barnieh’s contract with Hearts of Oak expires this December, and as such, he has all the power to play the waiting game and leave Hearts for free.

The Phobians, however, recognize that Barnieh is now a hot commodity and that allowing him to go for free will be an unwise business decision.

The club is thus willing to hand him a new contract so that the prospective clubs could negotiate with them.

Reports indicate that, while there is some willingness on the part of his management to agree to this as they recognize the role Hearts of Oak have played in Barnieh’s career, they are unsure about Hearts’ plans.