With Akhmad Ubaydullaev opting to play a lone striker up front, Uzbekistan limited themselves in the number of chances they created during the first half, but also did a fine job in nullifying Ghana’s attacking threat. On the rare occasions that the Black Satelites did manage to create chances, their finishes in the opening 45 minutes tended to end up high and wide of the target.

A few efforts did go close though. Shortly after the half hour mark, Emmanuel Agyemang-Badu’s long-range free-kick was deflected just past the post for a corner, while Opoku Agyemang fired into the side netting from an acute angle and David Addy also saw a low shot fly wide via a ricochet.

Yet, towards the end of the first half, the Asians showed their attacking capabilities with a quick counter-attack that almost caught Ghana unaware. Sellas Tetteh’s side were let off the hook when a shot flashed across the face of goal, but they weren’t so fortunate two minutes into the second half when Sherzodbek Karimov got on the end of Jasur Khasanov’s cross to put the Uzbeks ahead.

However, the goal served only to re-energise the Africans, who poured forward in search of the equaliser. It came on the hour, when Addy put in a superb left-footed cross into the danger zone to find Osei. The star of the FIFA U-17 World Cup Korea 2007 took one touch, which threatened to run away from him, but he caught up with the ball, producing a typical poacher’s finish.

Fifteen minutes later, Ghana scored the winner. A cross from the right from substitute Abeiku Quansah was flicked on into the path of Adiyiah, who fired the ball past Sanjar Kuvvatov to wrap up the three points for the Satelites.