Ghana lead Korea Republic by two at half time
Published
After starting the match in a relative slumber, the Ghanaian side woke up in a big way and scored goals in the 24th and 34th minutes to claim a 2-0 lead over Korea Republic at half time.
Korea Republic tried to battle back, and were able to generate some good opportunities in the final 10 minutes of the half; though they lacked a masterful finishing touch throughout the half.
Jordan Ayew dropped in what was described as the cross of the tournament in the 34th minute, and Mohammed Kudus headed home the easy ball to give Ghana a 2-0 lead.
The energy shifted significantly when Ghana scored the opening goal, as what had been a Korean-dominated contest shifted to a more even pace. Ghana started mounting a lot more efficient and balanced possessions beyond the 30 minute mark.
Shockingly, it was Ghana who struck first despite the possession disparity, when a free kick dropped in the Korea Republic danger zone and bounced around a few times before Mohammed Salisu was able to fire into the corner of the net.
The goal was reviewed for a hand ball; the hand ball was apparent against Ghana, but the referee ruled it was incidental not influential enough on the play, so the goal stood.
Through the first 20 minutes of the contest, Ghana enjoyed just a little over 25 per cent of ball possession, as the Korean side were totally dominant. Daniel Amartey of Ghana received the first yellow card booking of the game at the 20 minute mark.
Korea Republic really took control of the pace after an early lull, with seven corner kicks attempted in the opening 17 minutes. Son Heung-min tried a couple different tactics on corner deliveries, but none could break through the Ghanaian defence.
Each team took their time to settle in to the action after opening kickoff; a creative free kick try by Korea Republic in the seventh minute resulted in a desperate deflection by Ghana and a pair corner kick tries, but to no avail.