Ghana captain Andre Ayew has come to the aid of his teammate Caleb Ekuban after his penalty miss against Tunisia saw the Black Stars exit the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations.
Ghana’s dream of ending a 37-year wait for a title was brought to a horrible end after losing 5-4 on penalties to the Carthage Eagles on Monday at the Ismailia Stadium.
An own goal by Rami Bedoui cancelled out Taha Khenissi’s second-half strike as the game went into the extra time and subsequently into penalty shootouts.
The North African side converted all their spot-kicks with Ghana’s only miss coming from striker Caleb Ekuban.
Speaking to reporters after the match, the Swansea City star refused to attribute the team’s exit to Caleb Ansah Ekuban but rather accepted all responsibilities of the defeat as captain of the Black Stars.
“We worked really hard from Dubai, we coped with all we wanted and fought as a team, Ghanaian and leader. No player here should be hold responsible, as a leader of the team I take all responsibilities for the players and we’re going to work and make sure we come back stronger.”
“The entire team gave their everything but like I said after the 90 minutes when the Tunisians were tired we dominated but we couldn’t get the second goal. The penalty is a 50-50 game sometimes you’re lucky and sometimes you’re not but I want to congratulate all the players because they showed a lot of determination.”
