The Black Stars of Ghana by two goals to nil to the Samurai of Japan in the ongoing 2025 Kirin Cup at the Toyota Stadium.
Both teams are familiar foes, having played each other at this level on several occasions.
The last time the pair met in 2022, the Japanese side ran riot, beating the Black Stars 4-1, with Jordan Ayew scoring the consolation goal.
In today’s fixture, Otto Addo handed Joseph Addo a starting berth in post, Derrick Kohn an opportunity at right back, Brandon Thomas Asante partnering the captain, Antoine Semenyo in attack with Francis Abu and Kwesi Sibo behind them anchoring from midfield.
The Blues start the game brightly with several possession plays, which paid off as a sweet team effort saw Mainz midfielder Kaishu Sano lay off a perfectly placed pass into the path of Monaco forward Takumi Minamino for the opening goal of the game.
The next half hour mark saw the visiting West African giants awoken by that goal deficit for the much-needed equalizer, which they failed to it.
The first half ended 1-0 in favor of the host side.
On the hour mark, Ritsu Doan doubled the scoring for the Blues in a game they dominated from start to finish.
The Black Stars lost by two goals to nil to the Blue Samurai.
Otto and his technical team will hope for an improved performance in the next game against South Korea.
