Ghana U20 – Match Report vs Indonesia U23 (02/06/2022)

Ghana U20 fell short to Indonesia U23 in their second match of the Tournoi Maurice Revello. Ghana lined up in a flat 4-3-3 against Indonesia’s 4-2-3-1 and controlled most of the game but struggled to create a lot of chances. After around an hour, Raka Cahyana scored the only goal of the match after an error from the Ghanese goalkeeper. With this loss, Ghana is still on zero points after two matches and will not go through to the semi-finals.

Ratings:

• A1 – Very good, could play higher
• A2 – Strong potential to play higher
• B1 – Good, strong player at level
• B2 – Potential to be a strong player at level
• C – Average for the level, rewatch
• D – Below average in this match

Eugene Amankwah Ampofo

Player Profile:

• Nationality: Ghanese
• Age: 17
• Date of birth: 30/11/2004
• Current club: Benab FC
• Career: Benab FC
• Position: Left Back
• Preferred foot: Left

Eugene Amankwah surprised me with a very solid performance against Mexico and also did very well in the match against Indonesia. Amankwah normally plays in the second Ghanese division but showed a very high level so far in the Tournoi Maurice Revello. The 17-year-old plays as a left-back in Ghana’s 4-3-3 but doesn’t have the role of a regular fullback. In and out of possession Amankwah is very often pushed up forward like an extra central midfielder. A bit like you would see Mazraoui play at Ajax. In possession, he will most often be positioned quite far wide but when the ball is on the right side of the pitch he plays very narrowly. When Ghana lost the ball on Indonesia’s half Amankwah would very often counter-press very high up the pitch. With their rapid defenders, Ghana was not afraid to take some risks at the back leaving only the two centre backs behind at times, but sometimes their defensive midfielder Sarfo would drop back between them.

Based on the match I would estimate Amankwah stands at around 175-180cm with a pretty lean build. To really get himself to the next level he would have to gain some muscle mass, although this didn’t set him back against the smaller Indonesian players. He did really well in his defensive duels, often defending quite patient but also knowing when he could press an opponent before he took his first touch. He also seemed to read the game quite well with a couple of good interceptions.

On the ball, Amankwah was very impressive. He always stayed very calm and, besides a couple of inaccurate passes, barely made any mistakes. His first touches were very good and he made space for himself with good body feints if an opponent tried to press him. When receiving the ball he would most of the time look forward to play a progressive pass but he was also not afraid to cut inside into the midfield. Amankwah showed a solid passing range with some good long passes but his crosses were quite inconsistent this game and this is something he definitely can improve.

Rating – A1

Eugene Amankwah Ampofo has been one of my favorite players so far in the Tournoi Maurice Revello and played a solid match against Indonesia. Right now he only plays on the second tier of Ghanese football but based on these 90 minutes he could definitely play higher.

Aaron Essel

Player Profile:

• Nationality: Ghanese
• Age: 16
• Date of birth: 30/06/2005
• Current club: Bechem United
• Career: Bechem United
• Position: Centre Back
• Secondary Position: Right Back
• Preferred foot: Right

Aaron Essel was the Ghana’s captain against Indonesia and also their youngest player in the starting XI. The 16-year-old currently is a regular starter for Bechem United who play in the Ghanese Premier League. Essel played as the left centre back for the majority but played as the most defensive midfielder in the latter stages of the game. Looking at his height I think Essel is slightly taller than Amankwah Ampofo, around 180cm I would guess. Physically he looks a lot stronger than the left-back though. He used his body well against Indonesia winning most of his defensive and aerial duels, defending very patiently. Tactically he also looked quite strong. He had good spatial awareness and gave good cover to his teammates when needed.

On the ball Essel didn’t really do anything very spectacular. He looked confident with the ball at his feet and most of his passes were quite simple. He showed good passing range though with some lovely deep long passes to his wingers. The few times he dribbled with the ball he did quite well showing good technique for a defender. He also stepped out of the defensive line a few times with the ball at his feet and remained very calm in these situations.

Rating – A1

Aaron Essel was the youngest player on the pitch, by quite a margin, but played another strong match. Most of the Ghanese players made a couple of really questionable mistakes throughout the match but Essel was one of the few who just played consistently good throughout this match.