This marks the first visit by a Czech President since Ghana and Czechoslovakia established diplomatic ties in October 1959. It is also President Mahama’s first State visit since returning to office.

During his visit, President Pavel will engage in bilateral talks with President Mahama, address a business forum, inaugurate a Czech-funded health facility, and tour the Osu Castle and Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park.

President Mahama will also host a State Dinner in his honor.

The Czechs needed to win Wednesday’s final group game to avoid being eliminated, and they pushed for victory in the tense closing stages.

But they left gaps in defence and former Everton striker Tosun cut inside and drove a shot into the back of the net.

The Czech Republic’s hopes of victory were not helped when they had Antonin Barak sent off midway through the first half for a second yellow card after catching Arda Guler with his studs up.

Initially, Turkey struggled to break down their opponents and finished the first half without a shot on target, but their passionate fans were sent wild six minutes after the break when captain Hakan Calhanoglu struck into the bottom corner.

That meant the Czech Republic needed to score twice, and they got back level when West Ham midfielder Tomas Soucek volleyed in from six yards.

The game was wide open after that as both sides pushed for victory, and it was Turkey who got it in the 94th minute to confirm their progress.

There were chaotic scenes right at the end as both sets of players clashed, resulting in the Czech Republic having another player sent off as Tomas Chory was shown a red card.

But the Turkey players were able to celebrate their dramatic win soon after and look forward to the knockout stages.

Georgia, the lowest-ranked side in the tournament, took the lead in first-half stoppage time when striker Georges Mikautadze slotted in from the penalty spot.

But the Czech Republic – quarter-finalists three years ago – were by far the more dangerous side throughout and finally replied when Patrik Schick turned in after substitute Ondrej Lingr hit the post.

Schick then limped off with an injury as Georgia goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili produced save after save to ensure a share of the spoils.

And there was still time for Lobjanidze to fire over after a three-on-one encounter in the final seconds of the match.

The result means both sides head into their final games in Group F on Wednesday with a chance to progress to the last 16.

Roberto Martinez’s side are one of the tournament favourites after winning every game during qualifying, but they left it late to see off their dogged opponents.

The Czech Republic had spent much of the game defending in their own half but stunned Portugal when Lukas Provod’s whipped second-half strike flew into the far corner.

But their hopes of victory were dashed soon after as goalkeeper Jindrich Stanek parried Nuno Mendes’ header and the ball bounced off Robin Hranac and into the back of his own net.

Diogo Jota had a goal ruled out for offside late on, but Portugal were celebrating in stoppage time when Conceicao struck.

The goal ensured Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo marked his appearance at a record sixth European Championship with a memorable win.

The visit was to engage with major stakeholders involved in the design, fabrication, supply, and installation of fifty (50) modular steel bridges across various communities in the country.

The project is aimed at replacing the existing dilapidated and narrow bridges that lead to district capitals to enhance access to several communities and major towns, thereby improving connectivity, boosting local economies, and significantly enhancing the living conditions of residents in these areas.

During the visit, Asenso-Boakye had extensive discussions with key officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Industry and Trade, and Ministry of Transport, as well as pivotal financial institutions.

These engagements were part of efforts to reaffirm the Ghanaian government’s unwavering commitment to the project.

Currently, the project is 87% complete, and its early completion is anticipated to save the Government of Ghana (GoG) additional resources that would otherwise be required for the contractor to remobilize the site.

The financial institutions involved, including Československá obchodní banka (CSOB) and the project’s insurance firm, Export Guarantee and Insurance Corporation (EGAP), expressed their satisfaction with the progress and the ongoing collaboration.

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After making their debut appearance in the Mundial, the Black Stars opened their campaign with a defeat against Italy, who were eventual winners with a 2-0 loss.

Gyan scored the Black Stars’ first goal in the history of the global showpiece, as well as the fastest goal at the World Cup when he hit the ball past Petr Cech in the second group game.

“Our first game, Italy taught us a lesson. Although we played quite well, you could see they beat us with experience,” he told DStv.

“When we went back to the hotel, I and my brother were in a room and I told him, ‘I feel I am going to score in the next game because I know how the World Cup is now.

“I didn’t know the goal will come that early – It was 1 minute eight seconds. It was the fastest goal at the 2006 World Cup. I didn’t know it was going to come this early but I predicted a goal because I felt it.”

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Having opened his scoring account at the World Cup in 2006, Gyan was also heavily involved during the 2010 edition in South Africa. One of the goals which were the most talked about was the goal against the USA which earned Ghana a place in the quarterfinal.

“I remember the game against USA I was sick,” he added.

“I was down with malaria. The doctor said they thought I was not going to play the game. I was vomiting in the dressing room. I went there and everything changed so obviously I scored the winning goal during extra time,” he added.

Gyan remains the country’s top goal scorer and Africa’s top goal scorer in the history of the World Cup.

The 37-year-old played in the 2010 and 2014 Fifa World Cup.

He noted the long-standing bonds of friendship and partnership that existed between Ghana and the Czech Republic have strengthened and resulted in an exchange at high-level from both countries.

The Deputy Minister disclosed this when he paid a working visit with a Ghanaian delegation to Prague, Czech Republic.

In Prague, he held discussions with his Czech Republican counterpart, Martin Tlapa, on bilateral and multilateral issues of interest to Ghana, as the Czech Republic has taken up the Presidency of the European Union Council.

At the Multilateral level, Mr Mbomba noted with satisfaction that the long-standing tradition of cooperation between the two countries in various international fora, including support for each other’s candidatures for positions at various multilateral institutions and expressed the desire to continue such cooperation. 

He stated that Ghana’s priorities as a non-Permanent Member of the United Nations Security Council include working with other UN member states to ensure that the UN Security Council decisively responds to the new threats to Global Peace and Security.

This, he noted, included a balanced focus on the root causes of conflict, more effective peacekeeping mandates and burden sharing between the UN and Regional Organisations such as ECOWAS, though sustainable funding by the UN for the fight against terrorism, piracy, illicit arms, drugs, human trafficking, violent extremism and addressing climate insecurity.

The Minister added that Ghana will continue to use its tenure at the security council to advocate for global peace and security for sustainable and inclusive development and urged the Czech Republic to support Ghana in that regard. 

He also informed his counterpart that the assumption of the Presidency of the European Union (EU) Council by the Czech Republic provides more opportunities for both countries to work closely together on issues of common interest and stressed that the EU is an invaluable partner for international peace and security, as well as the achievement of the SDGs in Africa.    

On the situation in the Sahel Region and the Gulf of Guinea, Mr Mbomba stressed that Ghana has always been actively involved in ECOWAS and AU deliberations, including efforts at resolving regional conflicts on the continent, and that the government does not only have a strong interest in the afore-mentioned issues but is also committed to working with its partners, including Czech Republic.  

He went on to explain that, the complexity of the problem demands cooperation and capacity building to enable our countries to address the menace.

“Ghana is seriously committed to the fight and is calling on the Czech Republic to support efforts aimed at strengthening our capacity to contribute to the improvement of the security situation in the Region, particularly by implementing preventive counter-terrorism strategies,” he noted.

He said the Political Climate remains fragile in these regions and has been characterized by religious and communal tensions, a general climate of insecurity and recent coup d’états.

The Deputy Minister added that the growing instability in the Sahel is also a growing threat to Coastal Regions and Ghana and ECOWAS count on the support of Czech Republic towards resolving the issues. 

He recalled to his Czech counterpart the Accra Initiative and the ECOWAS Security plan and the efforts under Ghana’s leadership to put in place an ECOWAS force to take the fight to the terrorists.

He further indicated that ECOWAS and Ghana, during Ghana’s tenure as ECOWAS chair, were committed to funding the operations out of their own resources but face challenges due to the budget crunch most ECOWAS States are facing.

He, therefore, called for the need for burden sharing with partners in Europe and North America especially, including in the areas of intelligence, logistics, capabilities, training and deployment.

They were handed a dream start when Thomas Delaney headed home Jens Stryger Larsen’s corner unchallenged from six yards out in the fifth minute.

After a period of Czech pressure the lead was doubled when Joakim Maehle superbly crafted a cross from the left wing with the outside of his right boot which Kasper Dolberg volleyed home from close range.

To their credit the Czech Republic came out for the second half with great purpose and Patrik Schick guided home Vladimir Coufal’s cross for his fifth goal of the tournament, which may earn him a share of the golden boot with Cristiano Ronaldo, but was too little to avoid his country’s exit at the last-eight stage.

Denmark won the tournament in 1992 and also reached the last four in 1964 and 1984.

In a performance that developed into a slog after a bright start, Sterling converted at the far post in the 12th minute from Jack Grealish’s cross after fine work from Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka.

Grealish and Saka were two of the hosts’ better performers on a night when England were workmanlike and had to do without Mason Mount, self-isolating after coming into close contact with Scotland’s Billy Gilmour after the second group game.

Southgate also had the bonus of Manchester United captain Harry Maguire safely completing 90 minutes in his first game since suffering ankle ligament damage in early May.

Captain Harry Kane is still seeking his first goal of Euro 2020, although he was denied by a first-half save from keeper Tomas Vaclik.

At the other end, Jordan Pickford was rarely threatened, although he did pull off a fine diving save from Tomas Holes in the first half on a night when England got the job done – although a greater test than this now lies ahead.

That will come in the shape of the runner-up in Group F at Wembley on Tuesday, 29 June (17:00 BST). The final Group F games take place on Wednesday, with Germany facing Hungary and Portugal playing France (both 20:00 BST).