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18 hours ago
13
Key events
Hydration mail
“Just think it’s worth pointing out, the refereeing in almost every match so far has kept the action flowing brilliantly; very rarely falling for the usual play-acting, they are allowing physical contact to occur and generally giving the benefit of the doubt to tackles etc. It has meant matches have been played at a high pace, with momentum building up and players generally getting back to their feet quickly as soon as they realize they haven’t bought a foul. Loving it.” – Joe Neate
As a referee who can barely keep up with Under-14s, I appreciate it, too.
67 min SHOT FOR PANAMA. Ghana give the ball away too easily, and Ramos hits a low curling shot from the top of the penalty arc that misses the left post by only a few inches.
Hydrate!
66 min Ghana’s ascendancy continues, even as a player is down after a shout for a foul that went ignored.
Rodriguez squanders a promising possession at the other end.
65 min CHANCE FOR GHANA! Thomas-Asante puts a near-perfect cross at the top of the 6-yard box, and Mosquera is again nowhere near it. But Ayew, under a bit of pressure, can’t turn the ball into the net.
64 min The subs are immediately involved in the Panama attack, but a long-range shot from left back Blackman may not have been the ideal outcome. Easy catch for Asare.
63 min Subs for Panama: Waterman and Martinez are out. Universidad Catolica teammates Londoño and Fajardo replace them.
61 min Now it’s Ghana’s turn to hit the side netting, though it’s from a longer distance. It was also deflected, so we’ll have a corner. The keeper doesn’t come close to it and may be a bit lucky to see it bounce harmless through to the other side of the field.
59 min Panama’s passing simply isn’t as sharp as it was in the first half. Even when they’re not being pressed.
And as I type that, a pass (or maybe a scuffed shot) finds Martinez, whose close-range shot finds the side netting.
58 min Subs for Ghana: Fatawu and Thomas-Asante replace Sulemana and Nuamah. Thomas-Asante is a Coventry City player.
57 min Some tense midfield battles forming now. Panama get back to passing it around and the back and looking long.
55 min Oops – Panama switch off a bit and allow a counter from Ghana.
54 min Asare’s first act is to punch clear after a short corner and a high cross.
53 min Panama get back to work offensively, and Ghana are forced to head clear and concede a corner.
51 min Murillo faces up to Ghanaian attacker Sulemana, blocks his efforts to get a cross in, then dispossesses. The Atalanta player fouls with some frustration.
50 min Ghana go long, looking for Yirenkyi. His awkward shot goes about 20 feet too high.
48 min SHOT FOR GHANA. Finally. A well-worked set piece leads to a nice cross, and Adjetey rises above the crowd for a header, but it hits the ground just in front of Mosquera and is instantly smothered.
47 min Ghana look ever so slightly more potent in the attack now.
Ati-Zigi was certainly Ghana’s best player in the first half. Maybe the best player on the field.
46 min As we feared, Ati-Zigi cannot continue. Enter Asare.
One more:
“Panama are better than I expected. They aren’t pulling up trees, but there’s a pattern to their attack, with two players wide, Waterman central, and two midfielders close to the penalty box. With Ghana, I can barely tell you who’s playing up front, let alone see what they’re supposed to be doing. The Black Stars aren’t shining brightly tonight.” – Kári Tulinius
Panama have been a Concacaf power in recent years for a reason. They know what they’re doing, and they can get it done without any top-tier players.
Halftime mailbag
“‘Freshly hydrated’ by standing about in the pissing rain for three minutes, I take it?” – James Humphries
The fans are certainly hydrated.
“I’m loving this Ghanaian goalkeeper who apparently thinks he’s playing in the 1970 World Cup.” – Michael Meagher
That’s the year I was born, coincidentally.
Stat of the half: Panama have completed 277 passes. Ghana? 149.
Halftime: Ghana 0-0 Panama
The first few minutes of this game were promising. Panama had a good effort on goal, forcing a brilliant save. Ghana showed a bit of attacking acumen.
After that, the entertainment value of this one plummeted.
45 min +5 Free kick to Ghana on a dive by Semenyo.
45 min +4 No pressure from Ghana. Andrade dribbles tentatively up the left side, nearly to the midfield line.
Then he passes it back to Cordoba. Sigh.
45 min +2 Rodriguez tries to break down the left flank but is literally surrounded by four yellow shirts. He tries to draw a foul, which was probably his only option, but Ghana clear easily.
45 min We’ll have five more minutes. Not sure we really wanted them. Ghana will need to sort out their sputtering attack at halftime.
44 min Benjamin Asare, the only player on the Ghana roster who plays club ball in Ghana, is warming up to replace Ati-Zigi. He was considered a potential starter before the Cup, so perhaps this wouldn’t be a drop in quality, but Ati-Zigi has been superb in this match.
41 min Rodriguez makes a few moves on the ball, then sends a pass skipping out of bounds. Oops.
Ati-Zigi has gone down, which isn’t a good sign. The broadcast feed shows an overhead view as the physios work on Ati-Zigi’s groin. After a few awkward seconds, a director somewhere realizes this isn’t appropriate television and switches to something else.
40 min Ati-Zigi out AGAIN to stop a through ball before the wide-open Murillo can play it, and AGAIN, Panama shoot quickly with the goalkeeper stranded but can’t get the shot on frame.
38 min Ati-Zigi once again has to storm out bravely to punch a ball clear under heavy pressure. The ball lands near Ramos, who tries to shoot quickly with Ghana’s goalkeeper scrambling back to his feet, but the shot is high.
36 min We’ve seen a couple of replays now of that penalty shout. One angle makes it seem like legal shoulder contact. Another looks like an extended-arm push in the back.
34 min Is that a penalty? Long ball over the top for Martinez, and he seems to have bundled down by a defender. No call.
A few seconds later, another ball floats into the area where Ati-Zigi and a Ghanaian teammate challenge against a Panamanian attacker. Both Ghanaian players are down injured.
33 min ESPN stats show Panama defender Cordoba has already completed 43 passes out of 45 attempts. Impressive, but it also shows how little Panama have managed to move forward in recent minutes.
31 min Nothing comes of the free kick. But the hydration break seems to have altered the momentum, swinging in favor of Ghana.
