After Beating Algeria, Are Ghana Genuine AFCON Contenders?

By
at Internationaled.org

Published: January 24, 2015

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Avram Grant’s Ghana were one of the biggest disappointments of the first round of Africa Cup of Nations group-stage matches.

The Black Stars started well against Senegal, exploiting the space ahead of the Teranga Lions’ defence and enjoying large spells of possession.

However, despite opening the scoring through an Andre Ayew penalty, they were unable to capitalise on their early dominance.

In the second half, Alain Giresse’s side dropped their 3-5-2 formation and switched to playing with four at the back, an approach they used for the latter portion of their qualifying campaign.



The changed proved effective. Senegal suddenly looked far more cohesive and much stronger than their West African counterparts.

Mame Biram Diouf equalised on 58 minutes before a late Moussa Sow goal gave Giresse’s side a vital victory.

For Avram Grant, the loss represented a dreadful start to his Black Stars career—the former Chelsea manager only took the hot seat after the conclusion of the qualifying series—but it wasn't totally unforeseen.

Indeed, in a pre-tournament predictions piece for Kick Off magazine, I forecast that the Black Stars would be the disappointments of the competition.

There were various factors that influenced my conclusion.

The West African heavyweights had been underwhelming during qualification, and while they topped their (fairly straightforward) pool, it wasn't before they had been defeated by minnows Uganda.



Similarly, an injury to Kwadwo Asamoah had ruled the Juventus man out of the 2015 continental showpiece. Not only is Asamoah a versatile and talented operator, but he also brings the experience of being a multi-time winner of a major European league—there aren't too many sides at the 2015 AFCON that can call on that calibre of competitor.

I also questioned w...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - International Football

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