AFCON U20 FINAL: Ghana Satellites Defeat Uganda Hippos To Win 4th Title

Ghana’s U20 side, Ghana Satellites have defeated Uganda Hippos 2-0 to win the U20 African Cup of Nations at Olympic Stadium in Nouakchott, Mauritania.

Daniel Barnieh’s goals in either half sealed Ghana’s victory on the day the country is celebrating 64 years of independence from Britain.

This was Ghana’s 4th U-20 championship having won the title in 1993, 1999 and 2009.

The Black Satellites made it out of the group stages as one of the best two third-placed teams after losing their last group match to the Gambia to finish third in Group C. They had beaten Tanzania 4-0 and a goalless draw against Morocco to push them into the quarters.

In their quarterfinals match against Cameroon, one of the pre-tournament favorites, the Black Satellites came from a goal down in extra time to force out a 1-1 draw and won the tie on penalties to progress to the semifinals of the competition.

In the last four, they were matched up against the Gambia, the same team that beat them 2-1 in the group stages. This time, the Ghanaians proved to have done their homework right and laid down a 1-0 revenge against the Young Scorpions to sail through to the finals.

On the other hand, the Hippos of Uganda who were taking part in this competition for the first time in history, finished second in Group A after 2-1 and 2-0 victories over hosts Mauritania and Mozambique. They, however, lost by 1-0 to Cameroon.

They faced a tough Burkina Faso side in the quarterfinals and weathered the West African storm to win on penalties to qualify for the semifinals.

They were unstoppable in the last eight, beating Tunisia emphatically 4-1 to announce themselves in the final with a thud.

Uganda have bad luck against Ghana. Uganda’s senior team, the Cranes too lost 2-0 to Ghana in the 1978 African Cup of Nations final.

Lee Ray

Lee Ray is a qualified journalist dedicated to inform and update you with News, Gossip, Entertainment, Showbiz and Music!