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Ghana played a 2-2 draw against the Mambas of Mozambique, surrendering a two-goal lead in injury time and are now almost certainly out of the AFCON 2023 tournament.
Crystal Palace forward Jordan Ayew drew the first blood after 15 minutes when he coolly slotted home from the spot. Mozambique full-back Infren Nanani had brought down Joseph Paintsil inside the box.
Mozambique gave the Black Stars a run for their money, standing toe-to-toe against their opponents on Monday night.
At the start of the second half, the East African side picked up from where they left in the first. The Mambas could have equalised after the restart but Bruno Langa’s shot was dealt with by Ghana goalkeeper Richard Ofori.
Odyssey ends in heartbreak; fans left in awe
In the 67th minute, Ghana were awarded another penalty after Reinildo Mandava handled Mohammed Kudus’ shot inside the box. Jordan Ayew again converted to put the West African side in a comfortable position.
At this point, Ghana were well cushioned in second spot in group B with four points, ahead of Egypt in third.
From the streets of Accra to Kumasi and Takoradi, celebrations had begun. After failing to win their first two games – gaining just one point in those matches – they were winning and on the way to the knockouts.
Ghana held on till the 90th minute despite Mozambique trying several times to dislodge their defence. However, with few minutes of injury time to play, the unthinkable unfolded before our eyes.
The hunter then became the prey. Just as their nickname implies, the mambas’ venom struck, not once but twice (it may interest you to know that the black mambas are Africa’s longest venomous snake).
First, substitute Andre Ayew mistakenly committed a handball inside the area to hand Mozambique a penalty. Geny Catamo wasted no time in reducing the deficit in the 91st minute, scoring the resulting penalty kick.
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Three minutes later, Reinildo met Shaquille Momad Nangy’s corner and headed into the back of the net. 2-2 within a matter of minutes!
Last-minute anguish
Ghana goalkeeper Ofori was not under any sort of pressure when he conceded that late corner. The ball danced on its own, rolling out for a goal kick but Ofori chose to touch it. Obviously, the result of that proved calamitous.
Complete heartbreak for the Ghanaians who by that time dropped from 2nd to 3rd and from four points to two.
It was a complete drama that saw Ghana’s AFCON woes continue in regrettable fashion.
They have now disappointingly exited the tournament with two points from three games and minus one goal difference. However, they may need to know the fate of other third-placed teams in the other groups to confirm their elimination.
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Already, the third-placed team in group A, hosts Ivory Coast have three points. That means if three of the remaining four best losers have better stats than Ghana, then they’re automatically out.
As it stands, it’s a case of Ghana walking tightrope because their advancement into the knockout stages seems highly unlikely.
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