Hearts of Oak legend, Ishmael Addo has admitted that it’s painful to watch the club compete in Africa's competitions.
Having leave a mark on the continent in the late 2000s, the Ghana Premier League powerhouse has failed to perform in recent times.
The Phobians were booted out of the Champions League last season following a 6-2 aggregate loss to Wydad Casablanca last season.
They also got eliminated from the Confederations Cup following a disappointing 4-2 aggregate defeat to JS Saoura.
However, the club again suffered a 3-0 defeat to Real Bamako in the first leg of the second round of the Confederations Cup over the weekend.
Addo, who was the top scorer in the Ghana Premier League three times with Hearts, isn’t happy with how his former club has regressed.
"It's painful to watch Hearts of Oak play in Africa these days,” the retired striker said in an interview with Joy Sports.
“It's really painful because you sit back after putting the team up there. You left with the idea that they would be better than where you actually put the team but you realize that the team keeps coming down and dropping.
“Even though we had our time and left, we still have something towards the team, we still have this passion, we still want the team to achieve better than what we achieved but now they are taking a step backward."
Meanwhile, Hearts will hope to overturn a three-goal deficit when they host Real Bamako in Accra on Sunday, with their place in the CAF Confederations Cup on the line.
Addo was part of the last Hearts side to dominate the continent, having won the treble of Ghana Premier League, FA Cup, and CAF Champions League in 2000.
The Accra-based side also won the maiden edition of the CAF Confederations Cup in 2004 after beating domestic rivals Asante Kotoko in the final on penalties.