Ghana national football team qualified for the World Cup for the first time since 2014

The Ghana national team has become the first team in the African continent to be qualified for the final stage of the 2022 world championship.

In the African qualification playoff, Ghana footballers met with the Nigerian national team. The competition consisted of two matches. The first one was a home match for the Black Stars and took place at the Baba Yara Stadium in Kumasi. None of the teams managed to score a goal, so the second game became decisive.

The return match took place at the National Stadium in Abuja, Nigeria. The hosts were the favorites of the game. It was possible to bet on their entry to the world championship at bookmaking companies from the list at https://bookmaker-ratings.com/ with the odds of 1,77 (or 56% probability). Experts said the odds of Ghana’s victory were 2,2 (45%).

However, the rivalry statistics spoke in favor of the Black Stars. During their entire history of matches with Nigeria, they have won 19 times, scoring 73 goals. Their opponents account for 11 wins and 44 balls. Another 17 matches were drawn.

The second match for reaching the 2022 World Cup also ended in a draw in regular time (1:1). However, thanks to the away goals rule (according to it, if the score is tied, the team that scored the most away goals becomes the winner), the Ghana national team qualified for the championship.

Thomas Partey, who plays for London’s Arsenal, helped the Black Stars to take the lead in the 10th minute of the match. In the 22nd minute, the score became equal again: William Trost-Ekong from Watford converted a penalty. Then the Nigerian players made many attempts to goal, but the guests managed to keep a score acceptable for them.

The 2022 World Cup will be the fourth in Ghana’s history. Previously, the national team played at the championships in 2006, 2010, and 2014. The Ghanaians missed the World Cup, which took place in Russia in 2018. The best achievement of the “black stars” in the world championships was reaching the quarterfinals of the tournament in South Africa in 2010. Previously, only two African teams managed to do this, the national teams of Cameroon and Senegal.

The Ghana national team is a four-time winner of the Africa Cup of Nations. In addition, in 1992 the national team won bronze in the football tournament of the Olympic Games in Barcelona.

Ghana’s iconic figure is Asamoah Gyan, who plays for Legon Cities. The 36-year-old striker has scored the most goals (51) and set the record for most appearances (109). He also holds the record for the Ghana national team in goals scored at the World Championships (6). In 2019, Gyan retired from the national team.

Nigerians will not play in the World Cup for the first time since 2006. After the match, frustrated Super Eagles fans burst onto the field and rioted, smashing everything around them. The police had to use tear gas to calm down the brawlers.

This year, the 22nd FIFA World Cup will be held from November 21 to December 18. For the first time in history, the World Cup will be hosted by a country in the Middle East, Qatar. Matches will take place at eight stadiums in five cities. In the final stage of the championship, the 32 strongest teams in the world will compete for victory. It is also worth noting that the Qatar team has never participated in the World Cup before.