Ghana’s Black Queens saw their hopes of progressing at the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations take a serious hit after a 1-1 draw with Mali in Group C on Friday.
Despite dominating large spells of the match at the Stade Municipal de Berkane, Ghana were left to rue a host of missed chances that could prove costly in their campaign.
Alice Kusi gave Ghana a sixth-minute lead in what was a chaotic sequence in the box. A header was blocked on the line, and though Kusi initially missed her kick at the loose ball, her momentum carried it across the line. It was a scrappy goal, but it gave Ghana early control in the West African derby.
From there, the Black Queens had several opportunities to extend their lead. Evelyn Badu had a golden chance just before the break, meeting a cross at the back post with a free header, only to send it inches wide.
Moments later, she found herself involved in a goalmouth scramble, but her effort was hacked off the line.
Despite their dominance—60% possession and 18 shots—Ghana failed to capitalise on their superiority. Five clear-cut chances came and went, and they were made to pay for their wastefulness shortly after the restart.
It took 52 minutes for Mali to register their first effort on target and they made it count. Aissata Traore latched onto a well-weighted through ball from Saratou Traore, outmuscled her marker, and calmly slotted past goalkeeper Cynthia Konlan to level the score.
Ghana pushed for a late winner, with Princess Marfon coming close at the back post in the dying minutes, but the decisive touch eluded her.
“It’s a point a piece for Ghana and Mali in Group C 🤝,” noted SuperSport Football in a post on X.
The result leaves Ghana with just one point from two matches, and they now face a must-win encounter against Tanzania on Monday to keep their quarterfinal hopes alive.
Meanwhile, Mali move to four points and are well-placed to progress—either through the top two spots in the group or as one of the best third-placed teams. Their final group test comes against defending champions South Africa.
Ghana are now without a win in their last four WAFCON outings (two draws, two losses) and have failed to secure victory in their second group match in each of the last four editions (three draws, one loss).
For Mali, the draw brings an end to a three-match winning run in group play, but they’ll consider it a valuable point given the run of play.
