Ghana 3-1 Guinea: Sorry Black Stars Scrapes Past Luckless Guinea in Tamale

The Black Stars toiled to a fortuitous 3-1 victory over Guinea’s Syli Nationale in Tamale with a result that catapulted them further ahead of the chasing pack in qualifying Group E.

Asamoah Gyan’s early goal put Ghana ahead, but Guinea pulled level barely twenty minutes later. An Andre Ayew penalty set Ghana on the way to a lacklustre win, before Agyeman Badu’s injury time strike put a layer of shine over what had been a barely tolerable performance.

The 1-1 draw in the first leg left Ghana with only one win in three games, so the Stars were in search of a win and showed significant intent early on. Rabiu Mohammed and Jordan Ayew had early openings, but once again the magic was reserved for captain Asamoah Gyan.

Solomon Asante embarked on a slalom run through the Guinea defence, and his short pass found Jordan Ayew and Asamoah Gyan two on one against the guinea goalkeeper. The youngest son of the Ghana’s football maestro set up his skipper, who coolly slotted home.

Perhaps he had learnt some lessons from the insults Ghanaians rained on him for his occasional selfishness in Brazil.

The Stars remained on top for a while, but a combination of poor defending and goalkeeping brought the visitors back into the game.

A free kick struck the poorly constructed wall, and Mohammed Yattara was left unmarked in the box to slot past the aimlessly onrushing Stephen Adams.

The game devolved into barely formed half chances after that, with either side looking like they were operating at half speed.

The second half followed the pattern, until 56th minute when a Gyan shot struck a defender on the arm. The referee pointed to the spot and Andre Ayew calmly converted.

For some reason the Stars decided to protect the lead then, plunging an already unexciting game into full blown mediocrity. Guinea pressed for that elusive equaliser, but lady luck seemed to have eluded them in this particular instance.

Their constant search for the equaliser left them vulnerable to Ghana’s quick counters, and that’s what happened in the 96th minute when defender Baba Rahman went on a solo run, then set up Agyeman Badu whose shot beat the Guinea goalie.

Togo picked up a consecutive victory over Uganda’s Cranes, leaving Ghana three points clear at the top. The Black Stars’ eight points is three more than Togo’s five, with Uganda and Guinea still stuck on four each.

A good win for a lacklustre Star’s side, but with qualifying approaching the business end a significant improvement would be required over the next two games to get Ghana safely to Morocco.