Ghana came out on top against South Korea in an instant World Cup classic on Monday.
Otto Addo’s side edged the Asian nation in a entertaining five-goal thriller at the Education City Stadium.
Here is my three key takeaways from the second Group H encounter.
Mohammed Salisu was worth the wait!
It took the Ghana FA over three-years to convince him to finally end his self imposed exile to play for the national team, and he has been worth the hype.
Salisu is a bona fide star and he showed it once again in the thrilling 3-2 win over The Taeguk Warriors.
He wrote his name in World Cup folklore by becoming the first defender to score a goal for Ghana at the global showpiece.
Whats even more scary? At just 23 years old, he still has the potential to improve and will definitely be a mainstay in the Black Stars rear-guard for many years to come.
Abdul Samed Salis has instantly upgraded Ghana’s midfield
Relatively unknown to the Ghanaian audience prior to this tournament but the RC Lens star has quietly been one of the best midfielders in Europe this season.
A type of player whose influence on games may fly under the radar of an inattentive eye.
Samed has slotted seemingly in the Black Stars set-up alongside Thomas Partey in midfield.
A defensive midfielder who has shown his incredible ball-winning capacity against Portugal and South Korea.
But what really sets him apart from the options Ghana had previously( Afriyie Acquah) and more recently Baba Iddrisu is his uncanny ability to start attacks with incisive passing between the lines.
He is also incredibly press resistant which comes together to form the package of a complete, modern midfielder.
Lapses in concentration need to be addressed;
Ghana have conceded five goals in their opening two games in the ongoing World Cup in Qatar. Enough said.
More worrying is the manner in which those goals were let in.
Against Portugal the first goal was a controversial penalty but after Ghana equalized, the team switched off and conceded two goals in two minutes.
Against South Korea, Ghana raced to a two-goal lead and where comfortably in the driving seat at the break.
Then complacency set in the second half and the team conceded two goals in a space of three minutes.
The Black Stars did manage to grind out a result this time but the technical team need to figure out away to halt the current trend. Against top oppositions, cue in Uruguay, lapses in concentration WILL be punished.
