Ghana Survive Mali Scare to Reach WAFCON Quarters, and Alice Kusi Isn't Hiding the Real Target
Ghana didn't need to win in Casablanca on Thursday. They needed to not lose, and even that got uncomfortable. Evelyn Badu's header, set up by Comfort Yeboah deep into first-half stoppage time, gave the Black Queens the lead they wanted. Mali substitute Kadidiatou Diabate pulled it back early in the second half, and for the rest of the night at the Larbi Zaouli Stadium, Ghana had to defend a scoreline that was only just still working in their favour.
It held. The 1-1 draw was enough. Ghana finished second in Group D on four points, ahead of Mali on goal difference after both sides tied on points, while Cameroon topped the group with seven following their own 1-1 draw with debutants Cape Verde, who exit the tournament with one point.
Ghana now face Malawi in the quarterfinals on Sunday, August 9, with a place in the semifinals, and automatic qualification for the 2027 FIFA Women's World Cup in Brazil, on the line.
The target was never the quarterfinal
Alice Kusi, who has started all three of Ghana's group games, didn't pretend the campaign has been comfortable. But she also didn't let the relief of qualifying become the story.
"This time around the WAFCON has been tough, we can't compare it to last year, but we are taking it step by step," Kusi said after the match, Pan Africa Football reported.
"I know individually we are trying our best to make sure that Ghana will be at the FIFA World Cup. This is our first target, so we are still bringing the best out of us to make sure that at the end of everything, we achieve our dream," she added.
That's the honest version of where Ghanaian football is right now. A WAFCON semifinal isn't the ambition anymore, it's the checkpoint. The real prize is a World Cup ticket that comes with it, and Kusi said as much without dressing it up.
She also gave Mali their due, a side that pushed Ghana to the final whistle despite ultimately falling short. "Mali knows much about us, and we also know them. They were able to equalise, they did amazing, but this was a clear opportunity for us. We deserved these three points, but unfortunately, they were able to equalise, which is part of the game," Kusi said.
Ghana, who took bronze at the last WAFCON on this same Moroccan soil, will fancy their chances against a Malawi side making their first-ever appearance in the competition's last eight. But giant-killers have a habit of not reading the script, and Ghana know better than most that a group-stage wobble against a team you're supposed to beat can happen to anyone.
