Ghana will play their second AFCON 2021 game this Friday when they face Gabon at the Stade Ahmadou Ahidjo in Yaoundé.
Venue: Stade Ahmadou Ahidjo (Yaoundé)
Key Statistics
Gabon have failed to score only once in their last nine games.
The Panthers have kept three clean sheets in their last six games.
Gabon have made it to the knockout stage just twice and have just seven wins in the competition to date.
Ghana have failed to score in their last two games.
The Black Stars have won three of their last four meetings with Gabon.
Ghana have made it into the knockout stage of the competition in every edition of the competition since 2008.
Head to head
Gabon have only won one of their last nine head-to-head meetings with Ghana.
Latest Performances in all competitions
Gabon: W-D-L-L-W
Ghana: L-L-W-D-W
Gabon
Gabon opened their AFCON 21 account with a morale-boosting win over tournament debutants Comoros Monday.
A goal from Aaron-Salem Boupendza, who led the line in the absence of Arsenal striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang gave the Panthers the lead, followed by a solid defensive performance to see out the win.
However, with the way Gabon played, they will now that they cannot survive against much stronger teams, given that Comoros controlled much of the game.
Against Ghana, they will be looking to put in a better showing and perhaps take maximum points ahead of a much sterner test against high-flying Morocco. If they win this game, they will progress to the next round ahead of Ghana.
Possible Gabon starting line-ups
Jean Amoneme, Johann Obiang, Lloyd Palun Bruno Ecuele, Sidney Obissa; André Biyogo Poko, Serge-Junior Martinsson Ngouali, Guelor Kanga, Mario Lemina; Jim Allevinah; Denis Bouanga, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
Injured: None
Doubtful: None
Suspended: None
Ghana
Four-time AFCON winners and Africa’s eighth team, Ghana, began their 2021 AFCON campaign on a losing note.
The Black Stars fell to a narrow 1-0 defeat at the hands of high-flying Morocco on Monday. Former Southampton player Sofiane Boufal scored the only goal of the match to hand the Atlas Lions all three points and leave Ghana’s quest for a first AFCON title since 1982 on the brink.
The result was Ghana’s second consecutive international defeat (90-minute outcomes) and was the first time since 2017 they had lost two games in a row.
They would be eager to avoid a third straight loss and will look to pickup all three points to put themselves back into contention for knockout qualification.
However, a worrying sign is that Ghana have struggled recently on foreign soil. The Black Stars’ only win across their last eight matches outside of Ghana came against lowly Zimbabwe (D2, L5).
However, considering the quality of Gabon, who are ranked 89th in the world (Ghana #52), Ghana would fancy their chances in this game.
Possible Ghana starting line-ups
Joseph Wolacott; Baba Abdul Rahman, Daniel Amartey, Jonathan Mensah, Andy Yiadom; Thomas Partey, Mubarak Wakaso; Joseph Paintsil, Kamal Suleymana, Samuel Owusu; Jordan Ayew..
Injured: None
Doubtful: None
Suspended: None
Prediction
Gabon 1-2 Ghana.