Black Stars goalkeeper Richard Ofori has been heavily criticized for his role in Ghana’s stunning loss to Cape Verde in the fourth game of the 2023 AFCON in Cote D’Ivoire.
However, the Orlando Pirates goalkeeper believes he did what was expected of him but was let down by the absence of his teammates to complete a clearance that led to Cape Verde’s first goal.
He said this in a postgame interview after Ghana lost 1-2 to Cape Verde with Cape Verde’s goal coming in the 17th minute through Jamiro Monteiro.
Ofori parried a shot from the edge of the box but Monteiro was in the right place inside Ghana’s penalty box to score a goal that Black Stars head coach Chris Hughton said “rocked” his team. (Click highlighted text to read full story)
Walking the media through the goal, Ofori said, “The ball was bouncing in front of me and the ball was also going far away from me also so I need to stretch and just direct the ball to the side but unfortunately, my players were not there to block. It happens in the game and we need to concentrate and focus on the second game that’s the most important thing.”
Ghana plays Egypt next on Thursday, January 18.