Ghana defeated South Korea in the World Cup match on Monday in Doha, Qatar.
Mohammed Kudus scored twice as Ghana beat South Korea 3-2 in a thrilling World Cup match to keep their World Cup hopes alive. Ghana, who would have been eliminated if they lost, took the lead in the first half thanks to goals from Mohammed Salisu and Kudus.
South Korea’s Cho Gue-sung scored two brilliant headers in a ferocious three-minute spell, but that brace was not enough to propel South Korea to victory, as Kudus’ cool 68th-minute finish sealed it in Ghana’s favor.
South Korea provided all of the early drives, and Daniel Amartey’s crucial intervention prevented Cho from tapping in after just five minutes. Jordan Ayew’s free-kick delivery caused mayhem, but Ghana withstood the storm and pulled in front before the half-hour mark with Salisu slamming in from close range.
A second goal was scored ten minutes later when Kudus’ looping header reached the bottom-right corner off of another outstanding Ayew pass from the left. Just before the hour, South Korea had optimism. Cho assisted Lee Kang-in in bringing his fine cross home after he robbed Tariq Lamptey.
Later, the striker equalized by towering over the Ghanaian defense.
Though South Korea’s head coach Paulo Bento was given a red card for disagreeing with the referees after the game, Ghana ultimately emerged victorious after Kudus expertly struck the bottom-left corner after Inaki Williams’ kick was wholly missed.
South Korea must defeat the Selecao on matchday three, and they most likely need to do so by a few goals, regardless of what occurs in the later match between Portugal and Uruguay.
In essence, reaching the round of 16 currently appears exceedingly unlikely, but Ghana is still in the game and will only need a point the next time around.
This performance demonstrated that while the Black Stars will always face defensive challenges from opposing teams, they possess skill moving forward and will be driven by the chance to exact revenge for Luis Suarez’s notorious handball against them in 2010.
Key Opta facts
According to LiveScore, Ghana scored three goals in a World Cup game for the first time ever. They have also scored in each of their last seven World Cup games overall. The only other African nation to score in more straight games than Ghana is Nigeria (8 between 1994 and 1998).
– Ghana became the fourth team overall and the first team to earn back-to-back 3-2 victories at the World Cup (against or for) since Uruguay in 2010. (also Germany in 1994 and Switzerland in 1934).
– South Korea has only won one of its last 11 World Cup games (D3 L7), and they have already given up as many goals in this match as they have in their previous four contests.
– Ghana scored with all three of its shots on goal in this encounter, compared to two of its three shots on goal against Portugal on the first day of this World Cup.
– Cho became the first South Korean player to score multiple goals in a World Cup match and the first Asian to score two goals with a header.
What’s next?
It all peaks on Friday when Ghana battles Uruguay at Al Janoub Stadium and South Korea returns to Education City to play Portugal.
