Just when it looked like Panama was about to earn its first point in a World Cup, Caleb Yirenkyi stepped up in stoppage time to score the goal that gave Ghana a 1-0 victory in a chilly, rainy Toronto.
Semenyo started the play by sending Thomas-Asante into space down the left flank. Thomas-Asante shook off Córdoba’s mark, made a smart pause inside the box while waiting for his teammates to arrive from midfield. He sent in a low, precise cross that just beat Mosquera’s dive. That’s when Yirenkyi burst in like a locomotive to push the ball into the back of the net just a few meters from the goal line!
What a great game we saw in Toronto!
A match that threatened to fizzle out came to life in the second half, when Ghana showed a substantial improvement. However, Panama held firm until stoppage time, when Caleb Yirenkyi scored the winning goal for the Africans in the 95th minute, following an excellent build-up by Brandon Thomas-Asante and Antoine Semenyo.
The team coached by Carlos Queiroz earned three points and tied England at the top of Group L, while Panama’s agonizing wait to earn its first-ever point in World Cup history continued. It was an extremely cruel result for Thomas Christiansen’s team, who dominated the first half and deserved much more from this match.
