‘Nothing comes easy’ – Andre Ayew reacts after Ghana’s narrow win over Ethiopia in World Cup qualifier

Ghana captain Andre Ayew has conceded it was not an easy outing despite claiming a vital 1-0 win over Ethiopia in their 2022 World Cup qualifier on Friday.

A solitary strike from Mubarak Wakaso was enough to hand the Black Stars maximum points over Walya Antelopes in Group G at Cape Coast Stadium on Friday. Ghana coach CK Akonnor put faith in China-based Wakaso and Real Mallorca man Mohammed Iddrisu Baba to marshal the midfield in the absence of the first-choice pair of Arsenal’s Thomas Partey and Ajax’s Mohammed Kudus.

It was the former who repaid the manager’s faith in him by scoring an all-important goal for the West Africans.

“Three points. Nothing comes easy. Not a full stadium but a great atmosphere,” Ayew posted on social media.

“We thank all Ghanaians for their support and love. We keep going.”

The Black Stars are now top of the table with maximum points while South Africa and Zimbabwe come in with a point each after their goalless draw.

This was coach Hugo Broos’ first match in charge of Bafana Bafana having missed the team’s friendly against Uganda and the 2021 Cosafa Cup as he had returned home in Belgium for his second Covid-19 vaccination.

But after 90 minutes, at the National Sports Stadium in Harare, the spoils were shared.

Bafana Bafana will now host Ghana in their second Group G match on Monday, while Zimbabwe are scheduled to face Ethiopia away on Tuesday. 

South Africa have not defeated Ghana in their last five meetings in all competitions. Their most recent win over the Black Stars came in a friendly match on August 11, 2010, when they had emerged 1-0 victors.

In the 2015 Afcon competition, Ghana won 2-1 before the teams settled for 1-1 and 0-0 scorelines in friendly matches played in October 2015 and June 2019 respectively.

Ghana won 2-0 in the first round of the 2021 Afcon qualifiers on November 11, 2021, before settling for a 1-1 draw on March 21.