Afcon 2013: Ghana Advance as Cape Verde Fairytale Comes to an End

By
at Internationaled.org

Published: February 2, 2013

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An encounter far tighter than many predicted ended with the result that several assumed, as West African heavyweights, and last year’s semifinalists, Ghana sealed their return to this stage by eliminating Cape Verde.

Despite being outplayed for long periods by a Cape Verdean side that appeared to possess both more cohesion and more desire than their more-exalted opposition, Ghana managed to advance to the semifinals. It took a dubious penalty—where Carlitos appeared merely to nudge Asamoah Gyan off the ball in the box—and stunning performance by Black Stars keeper Fatwa Dauda to seal progression.

The Black Stars were toothless, and a late breakaway by Mubarak Wakaso—with the Sharks’ keeper up for a corner—gave the scoreline an undeserved gloss.

I wrote recently of the magnitude of Cape Verde’s achievements in this tournament to date, and this feels like an appropriate to once more highlight the feats of a nation which has a population of merely 500,000—that’s the same size as Bristol, for UK readers.

Had they just beaten Cameroon once, it would have been astonishing. To qualify ahead of them was unbelievable, and to escape the group stage in their maiden Cup of Nations is surely a feat that will rank up there with the continent’s finest.

Cape Verde can look back fondly and proudly on their recent experiences, the future looks bright for a squad high on both talent and organisation. As we close the chapter on their run, the archipelago’s advance, and a series of fixtures that will live long in the memory—injustices and all--we turn the page to Ghana’s future, both short and long term.



I have long been excited about this current crop of Ghanaian talent, those like Kwadwo Asamoah and Emmanuel Agyemang-Badu, gently entering their prime, and also the younger, exciting players such as Christian Atsu, Richmond ...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - International Football

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