Brazil delivered a dominant first half performance to beat Ghana’s Black Stars 3-0 in a high profile game played at the Stade Oceane in Le Havre, France.
Two goals from Richarlison in the 28th and 40th minute and a bullet header from Marquinhos in the ninth minute underlined Brazil’s brilliant performance to start the game.
Paris Saint-Germain superstar Neymar assisted both Richarlison goals with Raphinha assisting Marquinhos opening goal.
Ghana struggled to create chances especially in the first half and its best effort came in the second half when Captain Dede Ayew’s header hit the bar.
Black Stars Head Coach Otto Addo made several changes in the second half and had his team perform better in the half after handing Salisu Mohammed and Inaki Williams their debut games in the national team.
Ghana plays Nicaragua next on September 27 as preparations continue to the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar where the Black Stars have been drawn in Group H against Uruguay, South Korean and Portugal.
Neymar controls ball against Ghana in friendly
Brazil plays Tunisia on September 27 and is drawn in Group G against Switzerland, Serbia and Cameroon
Match Report
Black Stars conceded the first goal in the ninth minute off a Marquinhos header from a Raphinha corner kick. The PSG Defender was unmarked inside the penalty box and powered his header past Wollacott.
Ghana created its first chance from the left side forcing Marquinhos to concede a corner kick to prevent Baba Rahman’s cross from reaching Felix Afena-Gyan.
Richarlison, Lucas Paqueta and Raphinha wasted clear chances for Brazil in the early minutes.
Richarlison made up for his earlier miss by delivering an angled first time finish after a vertical build up involving Neymar for Brazil’s second in the 28th minute.
Richarlison
Richarlison took advantage of another poor piece of defending from a set piece as the Tottenham Hotspurs Forward headed in Neymar’s freekick in the 40th minute.
Brazil deployed a high press system to stifle Ghana’s build up and took advantage of an imbalanced midfield that sorely missed the injured Thomas Partey.
The Arsenal midfielder was replaced in the starting lineup by Baba Idrissu after picking up an injury during the warm up session.
Mohammed Salisu and Inaki Williams replaced Kamaldeen Sulemana and Afena-Gyan at the start of the second half. Salisu and Williams made their respective Black Stars debuts.
Ghana played well to start the second half and crafted its first big chance when Andre Ayew’s header crashed off the bar in the 52nd minute.
Both nations made several changes but Brazil maintained control of the game for the most parts and cruised to victory dropping its intensity and settling for a compact shape to keep a clean sheet.
