U-23 AFCON: Ghana kicked out

The Black Meteors of Ghana have been kicked out of the Under-23 CAF Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) tournament after a 1-1 draw against Guinea at the Ibn Batouta Stadium on Friday.

A 30th minute strike by Emmanuel Yeboah was not enough to send the West African giants to the next stage of the competition after securing four points in three games.

Coach Ibrahim Tanko’s men needed an all-important win against their Group A counterparts who needed a draw to sail through the semi-finals. Ghana jet off to a perfect start immediately the centre referee blew his whistle to kick start the game, trying to break the midfield of the Guineans with their attacking play.

It was Yeboah who grabbed his third goal of the season with a 30th minute strike in the 18-yard-box to get the Black Meteors ahead in the game.

The men in red and yellow despite being down by a goal, still kept their heads up in search of an equalizer but failed as the first 45 minutes ended in favour of the Ghanaians.

Guinea, after receiving pep talks from their Head Coach during the 15 minutes break, came into the second half as wounded lions who were seeking to redeem themselves. Ghana was left with no other choice than to adapt to a defensive play to save themselves from the shooting practice scare from their opponents, who looked dangerous anytime they approached.

Skipper Ibrahima Breze Fofana finally got the long-awaited equalizer for the Guineans with a thunder-bolt shot in the 60th minute to restore his side in the qualification race.

The qualification hopes of Black Meteors were at stake as they kept on sending in crosses into the half of their opponents, getting to the dying minutes of the game.

After 90 minutes of dramatic display, Guinea managed to hold Ghana in a 1-1 draw to book a ticket to the semi-finals.