The Black Maidens of Ghana thumped their Senegalese counterparts 3-0 in the second leg of the Federation of International Football Association (FIFA) U-17 Women’s World Cup India 2022 first-round qualifier played at the Accra Sports Stadium on Sunday.
Goals from Georgina Aisha Aoyem, Princess Owusu and Karima Abdulai ensured the Black Maidens progressed to the second round 4-0 on aggregate having edged the Teranga Lionesses 1-0 in the first leg encounter.
Both sides started the game on the front foot, but it was the Young Teranga Lionesses who had the first sight at goal with striker Hapsatou Melado Diallo coming close but Black Maidens goalkeeper Deborah Brown pulled off a brilliant save.
The opening quarter was very exciting, and Ghana’s Captain Georgina Aisha nearly put the Black Maidens ahead with a curler, but Senegalese goalkeeper Adji Ndiaye pulled off a stunning save to keep the game scoreless.
The Black Maidens created lots of opportunities past the half-hour mark but lacked the cutting edge to put the ball behind goalkeeper Ndiaye who was having a spectacular outing in the goal post.
Senegalese striker Melado Diallo who tormented the Black Maidens defence with her size upfront made a timely goal-line clearance to deny Black Maidens defender Janet Agyemang the opener. Maidens winger Karima Abdulai should have given the Black Maidens the lead on the brink of halftime but her close-range effort could only find the side net.
There were no goals in the first half. The Black Maidens had a blistering start to the second half as Captain Aoyem scored the opener for the home side with a calm finish inside the penalty box in the 49th minute.
The Black Maidens were ruthless in attack in the second half and striker Princess Owusu scored the second goal for her side with a close-range finish after a delightful cross from Captain Aoyem.
The Teranga Lionesses despite their brilliant first-half display struggled to create many chances in the second half as they were kept at bay by the Black Maidens defence.
10-woman Black Maidens beat Senegal
Nigerien Referee Nafissa Sani sent off Ghanaian striker Princess Owusu after a reckless elbow on a Senegalese defender with a quarter of the game left. But despite being a woman down, Karima Abdulai scored the third goal for the Black Maidens in the 73rd after an instinctive strike inside the penalty box.
The Black Maidens held on to secure an emphatic 3-0 over their counterparts.
