Substitute Ayo Akinola made Coach Paa Kwasi Fabin’s boys to pay for their lack of ruthlessness in front of goal as the USA snatched a 1-0 victory over Ghana in their second Group A match at the 2017 Fifa U-17 World Cup.
Both USA and Ghana began their campaigns on a winning note, defeating India (3-0) and Colombia (1-0) respectively and the victory at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in New Delhi takes them to the round of 16 of the competition.
The first half was evenly played, with USA edging the number of chances created before the break.
Blaine Ferri, in particular, went closest to scoring for the Americans, but both his free-kick effort and a dangerous-looking strike from the edge of the Ghana box missed the target.
The second half saw a more determined Ghana come out and press the initiative, as they created a handful of quality chances just after the break through Sadiq Ibrahim and Emmanuel Toku, in particular.
Ghana would come to regret not taking their chances, as USA won all three points thanks to Akinola’s goal on 75 minutes.
He slotted a neat finish past Ghana goalkeeper Danlad Ibrahim to propel the Stars and Stripes to the top of the group after two straight victories.
