VDEO: Ghana 1 : 0 Nicaragua

A 34th minute volley converted by Abdul Fatawu Issahaku gave Ghana a lone goal victory over Nicaragua in their  international friendly encounter played at  Lorca in Spain Tuesday.

It was a match Ghana dominated and created numerous scoring chances in both halves but failed to convert them.

The stars were also prominent in defence, keeping goalkeeper Richard Ofori virtually on holiday.

After losing 0-3 to Brazil in France last Friday, Coach Otto Addo was under pressure to deliver and calm the nerves of Ghanaians who are yearning for positive results ahead of the Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup.

The Black Stars uncharacteristically started the match without goalkeeper Jojo Wallacott, the Ayew brothers - Dede and Jordan - as well as Baba Rahman and other senior players.

Unlike the Brazil match which saw Ghana struggling to possess the ball in order to string passes together, the Stars looked good in ball possession and distribution against Nicaragua, especially in the first half, as they pinned their opponents to their half on most occasions but found it difficult to break their defence.

The stars came close to scoring in the 17th minute but Abdul Fatawu Issahaku failed to connect Mohammed Kudus’ intelligent cross from the right flank.

Five minutes later, a beautiful combination between Daniel Amartey and Gideon Mensah found Kudus within firing range but the Nicaraguan defence cleared the ball to safety.

With the few Ghanaian fans in the stands cheering on the Stars to break the deadlock, Kudus threatened to score again in the 27th minute but his shot went wide to the displeasure of the fans.

However, the deadlock was finally broken in the 34th minute through Issahaku whose powerful volley deflected off a defender and sailed into the far corner of the net, leaving goalkeeper Douglas Forvis Espinoza ball-watching.

The goal was initiated by influential midfielder Kudus whose combination with Daniel Kofi Kyereh found Issahaku who dummied two markers before firing home the opener.

Sensing danger, Nicaragua decided to adopt a defensive strategy to frustrate the Ghanaians who responded swiftly by multiplying in attack through the flanks.

The Nicaraguans also reacted by resorting to swift counter attacks as Acevedo Oscar Smith Aragney combined effectively with his attackers but Ghana’s defence, comprising Seidu Alidu, Daniel Amartey, Mohammed Salisu and Gideon Mensah dealt with the opponents to end the half.

The Stars began the second half full of venom and earned a corner kick in the 46th minute but Salisu, who had joined the attack, headed the ball over the bar.

In the 52nd minute Alidu also overlapped beautifully to unleash a cracker at goal but goalkeeper Forvis made a great save by pushing the ball to corner, which was wasted.

In their quest to level up, Nicaragua started using open spaces in their swift counter attacks but lacked the finesse to break down the solid Stars defence.

Both teams introduced some fresh limbs in the dying minutes but it was Ghana who continued to show promise by creating scoring chances in the 79th and 89th minutes only for Kudus to miss the  target narrowly.

During added time, Kudus was again put through but goalkeeper Forvis proved equal to the task with a brilliant save, injuring himself in the process.

Ghana will play their last friendly match against Switzerland in November 17 at the Baniyas Club Stadium in Abu Dhabi in the United  Arab Emirates  before heading to Qatar  to participate in the World Cup tournament

Watch a playback of the match below