Playing some delightful football particularly in the first half, Kwesi Appiah’s side brushed aside their opponents emphatically, kicking off qualifying for the AFCON tournament in 2019 in style.

The first game of Appiah’s second stint saw a number of interesting details, and Citi Sports’ Daniel Koranteng picks out the best of the bunch.

The Black Stars technical team (from left): Maxwell Konadu, James Kwesi Appiah, Ibrahim Tanko, Stephen Appiah, Richard Kingston) (Image credit: Images Image)

Massive Crowd Support

The return of Kwesi Appiah as Black Stars Head Coach seems to have reignited the nation’s love for the team. The attendance at the Baba Yara Sports Stadium was something we had not seen in a very long while.

The stadium was packed and the fans were on their feet cheering for the entire 90 minutes.

No Untouchables

Kwesi Appiah’s starting lineup on the day proved that no player is guaranteed a starting place.

The exclusion of players like Jordan Ayew and Afriyie Acquah from the starting lineup coupled with the inclusion of four debutants was a clear and strong message from the boss: everyone has to earn their place.

Raphael Dwamena (number 11) and John Boye (number 15) celebrating one Ghana’s five goals against Ethiopia (Image credit: Images Image)

Team for the future

Kwesi Appiah promised at his unveiling that he intended to build a formidable team for the future that would stand the test of time. The game against Ethiopia saw 5 players out of the eleven who started aged 23 or under.

Dwamena (21) who got a brace and Thomas Agyapong (20) were some of the standout performers on the day, and showed that Kwesi Appiah is a man with a clear plan.

Attractive football

The Head Coach also promised to produce good attacking football in his second stint in charge and it showed on the day.

A delightful attacking display on the day which was duly rewarded with 5 unanswered goals made the team a joy to behold.

This is the first time Ghana has scored more than four goals in a competitive encounter since beating Egypt 6-1 in 2013.

(Image credit: Images Image)

Competition for Places

The game against Ethiopia showed the strength in depth of the Black Stars Squad. The team was ruthless in their display even though it was missing a lot of ‘big names’ in the squad.

Every player on the pitch showed why they deserved to be given a starting place in the team, and this will inject a huge competition for places in the team.

The so called fringe players will be buoyed by fact that the team now seems to be based on merit rather than reputation.