AFCON U-17: Ghana beat Ivory Coast in second friendly

Ghana’s U-17 team recovered from an initial setback to beat Ivory Coast 4-0 in a pre-AFCON friendly on Thursday.

The Black Starlets had suffered a 2-0 defeat in the first of their double-header friendlies against the Young Elephants on Tuesday at the Stade Alassane Ouattara. The emphatic victory marked a strong response from the Starlets.

Ghana lost the first fixture against Ivory Coast in pre-AFCON U-17

Ghana shot ahead in the fifth minute through Michael Awuli, before doubling the lead on the stroke of halftime through Mark Aboagye to take a deserved 2-0 lead into the break.

Early in the second half, well-curated teamwork set up Yao Gavi, who made the scoreline 3-0 to put the game beyond the hosts. Forward Clement Agyei finally hammered the final nail into the coffin with a fourth goal after taking advantage of a defensive error.

Ghana will head to the 2026 U-17 Africa Cup of Nations as two-time winners, having clinched the trophy in 1995 and 1999.

They are paired in Group D alongside South Africa, Senegal, and Algeria. The AFCON tournament is set to take place between May 13 and June 2 in Morocco, featuring 16 countries.

The tournament serves as the qualifiers for the 2026 FIFA U-17 World Cup in Qatar, with 10 slots available for Africa. The expanded 48-team global showpiece will run from November 19 to December 13, as Qatar has been handed five-year hosting rights from 2025 to 2029.