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Mohammed Kudus and Felix Afena-Gyan scored two goals within two minutes as the Black Stars of Ghana beat Madagascar 3-0 at the Cape Coast Stadium in the Group E opening game of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.
The youngsters, having scored in the 54th and 56th minutes of the game, got an additional, yet a late goal from FC Nantes midfielder Osman Bukari to give the stars a resounding victory.
With the result, Coach Otto Addo’s side ends their six-match winless run after six-months period. Ghana last won a match in November 2021 when they recorded 1-0 against South Africa in a group game of the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.
Madagascar had their best chance in the game in the 37th minute, when Julio Donisa set up Tsilavina Fanomezantsoa in the box in a one-on-one situation but his shot went wide.
The first half however finished goalless leaving the supporters nothing to celebrate.
The Black Stars who were wasteful in the first half after a bright start of the game took the lead through Ajax Amsterdam’s midfielder Kudus Mohammed after connecting a Felix Afena-Gyan low cross in the penalty box just nine minutes after the break.
Three minutes on, the 19-year-old prodigy, Gyan, went from a provider to a scorer as he added the second goal to give the home side a comfortable lead with a flick from a Gideon Mensah cross.
The away side who threw more men forward for a consolation finally had their way to a goal-scoring opportunity when forward Bastien Heru chipped in a cross but was headed out by Denis Odoi.
Second-half substitute Osman Bukari finally sealed the victory for Ghana in the 87th minute after receiving a pass from debutant Antoine Semenyo before dribbling past the goalkeeper and slotting home to make it 3-0 for Ghana.
The visitors could not recover as the four-time African Champions secured their first three points of the Group E opener. Ghana then leads the table on goal difference ahead of Angola who also beat the Central African Republic 2-1 on the same day.
Coach Otto Addo and his charges travel to play the Central African Republic on Sunday, June 5, 2022, at 1:00 PM local time at the Estadio 11 de November in Luanda.
