Ghana Through To Semi – Finals
Ghana beat Angola 1-0, knocking the hosts country out of the Africa Cup of Nations. The lone goal came from Stade Rennes striker, Asamoah Gyan.
Angola tasted defeat after wasting several golden opportunities and ultimately a first-time spot in the Africa Cup of Nations’ semi-final.
The Palancas Negras stumbled against the four-time winners of the competition (1-0), which, despite the absence of star Michael Essien, bettered the host country.
The build-up to the match had been dominated by claims from the Ghana Football Association of “intimidatory” tactics by Angolan security forces designed they say to destabilise the team. If these allegations were true, the tactic proved ineffectual.
The young Black Stars team faced a hostile crowd at the November 11 Stadium, as Angolans noisily rallied behind their national team. The Palancas Negras created the early opportunities, emboldened by the feverish support of the home crowd.
But Ghana rained on that enthusiasm when Stade Rennes striker, Asamoah Gyan, outmanoeuvred defender Kali, to slot the ball past the Angolan keeper in the 16th minute.
Forced to play on the offensive, Angola doubled their efforts, but consistently came up short. Ghana maintained their defensive positions and resisted the offensive until the final whistle.
Angola: CARLOS, KALÍ, ZUELA [ENOQUE 77], DJALMA CAMPOS, RUI MARQUES, CHARA, GILBERTO [ZÉ KALANGA 73], STÉLVIO [JOB 57], MABINÁ[Y33], FLÁVIO, MANUCHÓ
. Coach: Manuel JOSÉ de JESUS.
Ghana: Richard KINGSON, Hans SARPEI, Samuel INKOOM, Lee ADDY, Isaac VORSAH, Kwadwo ASAMOAH, André AYEW (Rahim AYEW ), Emmanuel BADU-AGYEMANG, Asamoah GYAN (Matthew AMOAH), Opoku AGYEMANG], Haminu DRAMANI (Eric ADDO)
. Coach: Milovan RAJEVAC.
Referee: Mohamed BENOUZA
Other AFCON fixtures on 24 January
1996 Group: South Africa 0-1 Egypt
1996 Group: Angola 3-3 Cameroon
1996 Group: Burkina Faso 1-2 Algeria
1996 Group: Sierra Leone 0-4 Zambia
2000 Group: Ivory Coast 1-1 Togo
2000 Group: Algeria 0-0 DR Congo
2002 Group: Mali 0-0 Nigeria
2002 Group: South Africa 0-0 Ghana
2004 Opening match: Tunisia 2-1 Rwanda
2006 Group: Libya 1-2 Ivory Coast
2006 Group: Egypt 0-0 Morocco
2010 Quarter – finals: Algeria 3-2 Ivory Coast
2012 Group: Ghana 1-0 Botswana
2012: Group: Mali 1-0 Guinea
2013 Group: Ghana 1-0 Mali
2013 Group: Niger 0-0 DR Congo
2015 Group: Ivory Coast 1-1 Mali
2015 Group: Cameroon 1-1 Guinea
2017 Group: Morocco 1-0 Ivory Coast
2017 Group: Togo 1-3 DR Congo
By: George ‘Alan Green’ Mahamah