Black Queens head coach Kim Lars Björkegren insists his side deserved victory in their Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) semifinal clash against Morocco, despite suffering a 4-2 defeat in a penalty shootout on Tuesday evening in Rabat.
Ghana were aiming to reach their first WAFCON final since 2006 and appeared on course when Stella Nyamekye opened the scoring with a sharp finish midway through the first half.
However, Morocco responded strongly in the second half, with Sakina Ouazraoui capitalising on defensive lapses to level the tie.
After a tense battle, the game ended 1-1 in regulation time, forcing penalties where the hosts held their nerve to advance to the final.
Speaking after the match, Björkegren expressed pride in his team’s performance and argued that the statistics backed Ghana’s dominance.
“I am so proud of the girls. I think we were the better team today, and I think we deserved the win,” Björkegren said.
“You can see it in the expected goals. We had 2.21 against a team that had less than 1 expected goals.
“That is normally a win, but we were unlucky today. I could not be more proud of the girls today, and how hard they worked here,” he concluded.
Ghana will now turn their attention to the third-place playoff against South Africa, scheduled for Friday at Stade Larbi Zaouli. Kick-off is set for 19:00 GMT.
Despite falling short of the final, the Black Queens are assured a minimum prize of $300,000.
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