Ghana suffered quarter-final heartbreak in the FIFA U-17 World Cup as they were beaten 2-1 by African champions Mali in Guwahati on Saturday. The defeat will represent a devastating failure for the Black Starlets, who had targeted the trophy as their sole aim from the tournament.
The win for Mali follows victory over Ghana in this year’s CAF U-17 Africa Cup of Nations final and moves them into a last-four meeting with either Iran or Spain in Navi Mumbai on Wednesday.
In very wet weather at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium, both sides did well to play through the conditions, with Mali dominating to opening half. The Eaglets took the lead on the quarter-hour mark, as Hadji Drame broke in on the Ghanaian goal before putting his shot past Black Starlets goalkeeper Danlad Ibrahim for his third goal of the tournament.