Ghana and Egypt share the spoils in an entertaining encounter
Egypt and Ghana played to an entertaining 2-2 draw in an Afcon Group B clash at Stade Félix Houphouët Boigny on Thursday.
Mohammed Kudus returned to the Black Stars starting lineup to score a brace but it was not enough to secure maximum points Ghana who remain winless in two matches.
Ghana came into the match at the back of a disappointing 2-1 loss to Cape Verde in their opening match. A result that received a backlash from their supporters. The Pharaohs on the other hand played to a 2-2 draw against Mozambique after a late Mohamed Salah penalty.
Orlando Pirates goalkeeper Richard Ofori started in goals for the Black Stars again and captained the side. The Egyptians looked more settled in the early stages of the match. But failed to make major threats to the Ghanaian defense.
EGYPT SUFFER MOHAMED SALAH BLOW BEFORE THE HALFTIME BREAK
Egypt captain Mohamed Salah was taken off just before the halftime break with what looked like a hamstring injury.
Just when it looked like it would go to the halftime break with the score at 0-0, Mohammed Kudus had other ideas. The West Ham midfielder produced a moment of Individual brilliance when his stunning shot from outside the box gave the Black Stars a 1-0 lead.
The Ghanaians were the first to pose a threat in the second half. Kudus was once again a threat but his shot outside of the box went over the bar.
Egypt thought they had found an equaliser through centre-back Mohamed Abdelmoneim. But his tap-in from a free kick was ruled offside five minutes into the second half.
Ofori produced a world-class save into the hour-mark after a stunning effort from Omar Marmoush.
ENTERTAINING AFCON GROUP B MATCH AS GHANA PLAY TO A DRAW WITH THE PHARAOHS
Ghana striker Antoine Semenyo failed to double the scoring for the Black Stars with just one defender to beat with 25 minutes left on the clock.
Marmoush was a constant threat to the Egypt defense and was finally rewarded in the 69th minute. The Eintracht Frankfurt capitalised on a mistake from the Ghana defense to slot home an equaliser.
But the Egypt celebrations were short-lived after Kudus netted his second of the night to regain the lead for Ghana. It did not take long for Egypt to find another equaliser through Mostafa Mohamed as the encounter got more interesting.
The result means Egypt are second in the group with two points while both Ghana and Mozambique have one point each.
Cape Verde remain top of the log and a win against “The Mambas” will secure them a spot in the next round.
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