Black Stars seeking to make amends

Today, Group B Ghana Vs MaliNiger Vs DR CongoThe Black Stars are under pressure to beat the Eagles of Mali today after drawing their first group match. Ghana threw away a 2-0 lead to draw 2-2 with DR Congo in the Group B opener. But the Malians fought hard to record a 1-0 win over Niger to move to the summit of the table.This will be the third meeting between the two sides in the last 12 months. At the 2012 Afcon, the four-time African champions beat Mali 2-0 in the group stage, but the Black Stars suffered the same defeat when they met again in the third place play-off.Ghana were deprived of the services of some key players who had injury concerns prior to the first match and coach Kwesi Appiah will be hoping those players are available.Defender Isaac Vorsah was unable to pass the fitness test to start in central defence. Anthony Annan, who ordinarily is a starter, had to come on in the 73rd minute. The two players are likely to return to the starting line-up against Mali.Captain Asamoah Gyan and Mubarak Wakaso picked up injuries after the DR Congo match, but the medical team is optimistic that they will pass the fitness test for the second match.Goalkeeper Fatau Dauda who was the only local player to play on Sunday will maintain his spot after justifying his place in the team.Mali came into the tournament with a great deal of confidence after winning bronze last year at the expense of Ghana. Their coach Patrice Carteron is fresh to the Africa terrain, but he has a collection of players who have played together for a while and also play competitively at club level.Agencies

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Black Stars seeking to make amends