Mali dance in the rain, up stage Ghana to enter semifinals
AFRICAN SAFARI Last edition’s runnersup Mali stay on course for another shot at the title after prevailing over their west African opponents Ghana on a rainsodden Guwahati pitch in quarterfinal
GUWAHATI: Mali upstaged Ghana 2-1 at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium here on a rainy Saturday evening to reach the semi-finals of the FIFA U-17 World Cup. It was Mali’ s second win over their west African rivals after the U-17 Africa Cup of Nations final six months ago.
Mali will face the winners of the Iran-Spain quarter-final in Kochi on Sunday in their bid to retain the U-17 World Cup for Africa.
Mali had reached the final of the 2015 edition but were outclassed by Nigeria 2-0, who had won the 2013 Cup too by beating Mexico 3-0.
MALIADAPTTORAIN
Mali adapted better to the rain- induced soggy conditions to dictate the pace of the match, earning two free-kicks in the first three minutes. But the match could have been decided on penalties had a 40 th minute right-footer by Ghana midfielder I bra him Sulley not been disallowed.
Forward Hadji Drame drew first blood for Mali in the 15th minute with a solo run from the right flank after a pass from midfielder Djemoussa Traore. Mali came close to scoring at least twice before the break.
Mali went 2-0 up 16 minutes after the breather when Traore cashed inon a defensive error by Ghana goalkeeper Danlad Ibrahim. But more than Ibrahim, midfielder Kudus Mohammed would perhaps rue pushing an opponent in the Mali box a frac--
tion of a second before Sulley scored what would have been Ghana’s equaliser. Algerian referee Mehdi Abid Charef spotted the foul to disallow the goal.
NARROW LEAD
Mohammed made amends by converting a 72 nd minute penalty after Mali defender Fode Konate brought down Ghana substitute Sadiq Ibrahim in the box.
But his first-half misadventure and Ibrahim’s ‘brain fade’ moment in the second half were not what their coach Samuel Kwasi Fabin would have prescribed against a faster, more dominant Mali, who had denied Ghana their third U-17 African Cup of Nations title six months ago in Gabon.
“Our boys overcame wet conditions to score a memorable victory over a good side. But we have to be better in the semi-final,” Mali coach Jonas Kokou Komla said. His Ghana counterpart Fabin wished Mali the best for Africa. He agreed the goal disallowed made the difference to a match that could have been decided on penalties.
The game should have been abandoned and played another time but then the organisers said we have to play and so we played.
Ghana coach on rain affecting game I don’t normally talk about match officials but this one I have to complain. If the goal had stood we would have got a positive result. On the disallowed goal