Inside December 11, 2020

Inside December 11, 2020.qxp_Layout 1 12/10/20 8:09 PM Page 13
WAFU U-20:
DAILY HERITAGE FRIDAY , DECEMBER 11, 2020
Ghana beat Nigeria to secure semi-final spot
PRECIOUS BOAH’S
expertly-taken freekick
was enough to
give Ghana a 1-0 win
over Nigeria at the
West Africa Football
Union (WAFU) Zone-B U-20
Championship.
The win qualified Ghana to
the semi-final stage of the competition
while Nigeria are kicked
out. This sees a reversal of the
trend in 2018 when Nigeria beat
Ghana to qualify at the expense
of the Satellites.
The Black Satellites had an average
first half showing with
Nigeria dominating play.
Coach Karim Zito’s side
struggled to play with an identity
and lacked cohesion.
The team in various spells
throughout the first half, were
off the pace and looked unsettled.
The Flying Eagles twice had
the ball in the net but no goals
were awarded on both occasions.
The first was ruled out for
offside while the second was
rightly disallowed for an initial
handball.
Chances were far and few in
the first 45 minutes but Nigeria
blew most of their half chances,
ensuring that the first half ended
goalless.
Back from recess, the Satellites
upped their game and began
to create some chances.
However, there were still lingering
issues. Second half substitute,
Abdul Mugeese Zakaria,
added some bite to Ghana’s attack.
The Dreams FC attacker onloan
at Eleven Wonders, made a
beautiful dribbling run in from
the left flank into the middle and
was brought down for a free kick
inside the 76th minute.
Precious Boah, after properly
positioning the ball, unleashed a
beauty into the net with the
Nigerian goalie looking stupefied
in between the sticks.
Boah will grow from hero to
zero minutes later when he received
a second booking for nonsporting
conduct to trigger his
ejection from the game.
Ghana played the remaining
minutes with 10 men but held on
solidly to ensure they ended the
game with their solitary lead.
The win qualifies Ghana to
the next stage while a draw in the
next game against Ivory Coast
will be enough to cement first
place in Group B.
For Nigeria, the defeat sees
then eliminated, an occurrence
that will serve as a payback from
Ghana following happenings at
the 2018 edition.
Ghana XI:
Ibrahim Danlad (GK)
Philemon Baffour
Benjamin Aloma
Kobina Amoah
Nathaniel Adjei
Emmanuel Essiam
Eugene Adjei Frimpong
Daniel Afriyie Barnie (C)
Matthew Anim-Cudjoe
Mohammed Sulemana
Precious Boah
Robert Addo extends Hearts
of Oak contract to 2023
DEFENDER ROBERT
Addo Sowah has signed a
new contract at Hearts of
Oak that keeps him at the
club until 2023.
The centre-back has in
the last few years been a key
man for the Phobians even
though he has not always
been a preferred first choice
in the team’s starting line-up.
With his high professionalism
and display of quality
whenever he is called into action,
he has managed to establish
himself as an asset for
the Accra-based club.
On the back of successful
talks with his representatives
and officials of Hearts of
Oak, Robert Addo Sowah
has inked a new contract
that will run until 2023.
This season, the 27-yearold
has featured in two
games in the Ghana Premier
League and has so far been
impressive.
As the season progresses,
he should have a big role to
play for the team as they eye
enjoying success at the end
of the campaign.
On the back of
successful talks
with his representatives
and
officials of
Hearts of Oak,
Robert Addo
Sowah has inked
a new contract
that will run until
2023.
•Thomas Partey
•Robert Addo Sowah
Partey was not rushed back
from injury - Mikel Arteta
ARSENAL MANAGER Mikel
Arteta insists Thomas Partey's injury
setback was not because he was
rushed back by the club for their
north London derby against Tottenham.
Partey will 'miss the next few
matches' because of a recurrence of
his recent thigh issue, Arteta confirmed
on Wednesday ahead of
their Europa League dead rubber
with Dundalk.
The 2-0 defeat by Spurs was
Partey's first appearance in almost a
month and Arteta said: 'He did incredibly
well and was very confident.
We tested him three times and
he had zero incidents. In football
you have a lot of unpredictable actions.'
Partey limped off the pitch
against Tottenham - leaving Arsenal
light in defence as Spurs scored
from a counter-attack.
Arteta is set to give Arsenal's
kids their chance in Thursday
night's clash. The club are looking
to end their Europa League group
with a perfect record after five wins
from five.
Arteta added he would fully support
his players if they decided to
walk off the pitch if they felt there
had been a racist incident, in light
of what happened in the Champions
League clash between PSG and
Istanbul Basaksehir.