CHAN 2022: Black Galaxies lose opening game against Madagascar

The Black Galaxies were made to pay for their sloppiness at the back as they succumbed to a 2-1 defeat to their opponents.

Two defensive mistakes allowed Solomampionona Koloina and Tokinantenaina Olivier to give Madagascar a commanding lead, before substitute Augustine Agyapong pulled one back for Ghana.

Annor Walker’s side made the worst possible start to the game when a defensive mix-up allowed Koloina to ghost in behind Ghana’s defence to score after just 10 minutes.

Despite enjoying the larger share of possession, the Black Galaxies failed to take the chances and were wasteful upfront.

Daniel Afriyie Barnieh, Razak Yussif and Dominic Nsobila were all culpable for missing some glaring chances as Ghana went into the break a goal down.

The second half played out very much like the first, with Madagascar doubling their lead following another blunder at the back.

Ghanaian right-back Augustine Randolph fluffed his lines, allowing Olivier to steal the ball before lobbing the ball over goalkeeper Danlad Ibrahim.

Although Augustine Agyapong came off the bench to reduce the deficit for Ghana with an audacious strike, it was a little too late as Ghana fell to a 2-1 defeat.

The result leaves the Black Galaxies at the bottom of Group C, which contains just three teams due to Morocco’s withdrawal from the tournament.