In the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, Antoine Semenyo’s late goal secured Ghana their second win over Angola at the Baba Yara Sports Stadium. The Bournemouth striker came off the bench to score the decisive goal, extending Ghana’s lead in Group E by three points and setting off new manager Chris Hughton’s reign with a victory.
This marks Ghana’s fourth win over Angola in seven meetings and their second win in Kumasi over the Black Antelopes. The two teams will face each other again on March 27 in Luanda for the fourth-round fixtures of the 2023 AFCON qualifiers.
Angola started the game well and had the first attempt on goal, but Ghana slowly gained momentum and began to create chances. Mohammed Kudus had a couple of opportunities to score in the first half, but his shots went wide and were saved by the goalkeeper.
The second half started off slowly, but Ghana increased the tempo in the final 20 minutes. Kamaldeen Sulemana could have scored twice, but his decision-making let him down on both occasions. Thomas Partey set up Semenyo in the 81st minute, but his shot hit the side of the woodwork.
Eventually, Semenyo grabbed the winning goal in stoppage time through a scrappy rebound from Kudus Mohaamed’s freekick. The victory puts Ghana one win away from qualifying for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations in Ivory Coast.
Ghana currently leads Group E with 7 points after three games, followed by Central African Republic and Angola with 3 points each, and Madagascar at the bottom with 1 point. Despite frustration among the fans at the fully packed Baba Yara Sports Stadium, Ghana’s late goal secured an important win and continued their strong start to the AFCON qualifiers.
