Black Galaxies coach Daniel Annor Walker believes his team was tactically and physically superior to Benin in the African Nations Championship (CHAN) qualifying match on Sunday.
The hosts dominated the game from start to finish, with goals from Daniel Afriyie Barnieh, Mohammed Alhassan, and Gladson Awako securing a 3-0 first-leg win.
Ghana made a strong start, and their pressure paid off in the 25th minute when Barnieh scored a penalty to put Galaxies ahead.
Medeama’s Jonah Attuaquaye scored in the 36th minute, but it was controversially ruled out for offside, as Ghana won the first half 1-0.
Ghana players came out for the second half with a positive attitude, and it only took them five minutes to double their lead thanks to Alhassan’s great finish inside the box.
Captain Awako sealed the victory with a late third.
“We watched their clips and saw how they play so we were able to plan for them. In the course of the game, we stopped them from executing their plans and that helped us to win. Tactically and physically, we were better than Benin,” Walker said.
“I will also thank my boys because they played to instructions from the technical team and that made us successful in the game.”
The second leg is scheduled for Saturday, July 30 in Porto-Novo, with the winner of the tie facing Nigeria in the final round.
Ghana hope to return to the championship after missing the previous three editions. In the first three editions, Black Galaxies finished second twice.