Ghana feeling ‘blessed’ thanks to support from the stands
Germany and Ghana served up an electrifying encounter in their Men’s Stage 2 match on Day 5 of the Oslo 2025 Homeless World Cup.
Ghana, who finished 6th in the tournament in Milan in 2009, clawed their way back from 4-2 down at half time to level it all 5-5 with a minute to go, before Germany secured victory in the dying seconds from the penalty spot.
A quick break on goal gave Germany the lead before Ghana drew themselves level with a strike off the post. A great passing move across the face of goal put Germany back in front before Ghana got back on level terms with a strike from distance. Another pass across goal found a Germany player alone to tap home to make it 3-2 before a great finish from a penalty put them two ahead. Germany’s keeper then produced a double save as Ghana sought to reduce the deficit.
Into the second half, a great low strike put Germany 5-2 ahead before Ghana responded with a tidy finish of their own to score their third. An assist off the wall saw Ghana notch up their fourth of the game. Germany then missed the chance to restore their two-goal lead with a pass just proving just too long from an unrushing player. And then Ghana conjured up the equaliser: a player taking a touch before unleashing a piledriver into the top corner.
As both teams searched for a winner, Germany were awarded a penalty after a Ghana infringement. Germany’s captain buried a low shot into the right hand corner past the Ghana keeper to secure the win for the European nation.
Despite the loss, Ghana manager Jacob Amenano was in a positive mood. He said: “We are enjoying our time in Norway, it’s been fantastic for us. Our previous games haven’t been so good in terms of results but the last few games have been fantastic. We won yesterday and today it was just that bad luck was on our side. But it was a great game and the players are enjoying themselves. They are learning a lot from their experiences with other players who are part of the Homeless World Cup tournament this year.”
The manager is also thankful for the support Ghana are receiving from the stands. He added: “There are two Ghanaians in the England team and they are watching every one of our games and we watch every one of their games. We are blessed. And there is a lady with a Ghanaian flag, her dad is Ghanaian. She was so excited to see Ghana. We gave her one of our shirts which we used for the opening parade and she was in tears. She really wanted our flag also so now she is our ‘chief of staff’ with our flag. Cheering us on. We’ve made a lot of friends. We are enjoying ourselves. It’s been fantastic.”
Words by Craig Williams | Photos by John Anderson