Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Ghana beats Korea, US squad up next
MIAMI GARDENS — United States men’s national soccer coach Jurgen Klinsmann was in the house for an opportunity to see his countries World Cup nemesis Ghana on Monday.
Ghana played the Republic of Korea beating them 4-0 in its final World Cup preparation match at Sun Life Stadium.
Ghana will play the United States at Estadio das Dunas in Natal, Brazil in the first game of Group G next Monday.
Klinsmann got a good look at what to expect from Ghana as forward Jordan Ayew, who came in as a substitute for injured Majeed Waris early in the match, had three goals to lead his national team.
Ayew’s second goal in the 53rd minute sparked the Ghana faithful to begin chanting “We want USA.”
Ghana, located along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean in the subregion of West Africa, is 2-0 all-time against the United States with both victories sending the U.S. packing for home from the last two World Cups. Ghana beat the U.S. 2-1 in quarterfinals of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.
“United States will be a difficult match,” Ghana coach James Appiah said. “The group will be a big challenge. We’ll need to be well prepared for all our matches.”
It was difficult to detect whether Ghana was superior against the Korean side or its opponent played poorly.
Defensively, Korea looked slow to react to Ghana’s attack which led to a pair of first-half goals.
Ghana, also known as the “The Black Stars” took a 1-0 lead in the 11th minute as Ayew took advantage of a nice crossing pass to the far post from Kevin-Prince Boateng to beat keeper Jung Sungryong. Sloppy play by Sungryong allowed the ball to reach the back of the net.
Asamoah Gyan added the second goal of the half after stealing the ball from Kwak Taeswi at midfield. Gyan was left unmarked as he raced past Korean defenders, who were slow to react, striking the ball inside the right post for a two-goal lead.
Korea had its chances, though few, between the first two goals. The best coming from Son Heung Min, whose shot deflected off the right post.
Overall Ghana’s defense was admirable at times doing a good job marking Korea’s attackers, while preventing them a shot on goal.
Korea plays Russia in its first World Cup match on June 17.