Last Thursday night, January 19, 2023, the Black Galaxies of Ghana staged a historic comeback against their Sudanese opponents at the Stade Chahid-Hamlaoui.
Annor Walker made four (4) changes to his team that lost to Madagascar in their opening game: Augustine Agyapong, Sylvester Simba, Kofi Kordzi, and Jonah Attuquaye gained positions on the team that made history in Constantine.
Annor Walker, the coach of the Black Galaxies, revealed that he had to psyche his team up after conceding the first goal in the game against Sudan.
Sudan took the lead on the half-hour mark through Al-Merreikh midfielder Al-Gozoli Nooh, after Al-Hilal Omdurman’s Mohamed Abdel Raman had dazzled Konadu Yiadom at the Black Galaxies’ central defense.
The Falcons were unable to maintain their lead before halftime, and Maxwell Konadu equalised for the Black Galaxies with a deflected shot that beat Ali Abdallah Abu-Eshrein in the goalpost.
After recess, the captain for Thursday night, Daniel Afriyie Barnieh, after nineteen minutes into the second half, won a penalty off the Sudan defence and stepped up to take it himself to give Ghana a deserving lead.
If it hadn’t been for VAR, the FC Zurich signing would have been celebrating a second time, but his header was ruled out for offside. The 21-year-old’s night was cut short when he was shown a red card for a rash challenge on his marker.
Suraj Seidu of Accra Hearts of Oak, who came off the bench to score a third goal, helped the Black Galaxies secure all three points despite being down a man.
In a post-game press conference, Annor Walker discussed the role he played in securing a comeback victory over Burhan Tia and the Falcons of Sudan.
He revealed, “I am very happy about the win. It’s a win for the team and all Ghanaians. Thank you to all Ghanaians, and thank you to everyone who supported Ghana.”
“My players looked surprised after conceding the goal. When I got the opportunity to talk to them, I psyched them up and let them know it was not over yet. I told them we can make it, and I made them know it’s not over until it’s all over,” Annor Walker explained at the post-match press conference.
