Burkina Faso coach Paul Put says his side deserve to be in the Africa Cup of Nations final after beating tournament favourites Ghana on penalties on Wednesday.
------------------------------------------------------------
Predict result and win big with Soccer6
------------------------------------------------------------
With the two sides inseparable after regulation and extra-time where Astride Bance's 60th-minute goal had cancelled out a controversial Wakaso Mubarak penalty with just 13 minutes played, spot-kicks where needed to be decided who would face Nigeria on February 10 at the National Stadium.
More controversy followed ahead of the lottery of the penalty shoot-out, as the Stallions' Jonathan Pitroipa was sensationally shown a second yellow card for simulation, despite having been clearly fouled in the box in the 117th minute. As a result, the Stade Rennes winger will miss the final on Sunday.
After the match, Put said: "It was a tough game but we deserved to win even though the decisions of the referee did not match the commitment shown by the 22 players on the pitch.
"We were upset with the penalty given to Ghana but I told my players at half-time that we need to forget about it and continue to fight.
"We knew Ghana have a lot of offensive players and we needed to maintain our shape and position. I am happy with the win but I am more happy for the players and the people of Burkina Faso."
Ghana coach James Kwesi Appiah was, meanwhile, naturally disappointed to have seen his side's AFCON dreams ended at the Mbombela Stadium.
"We created some chances but penalties are unfortunate, anything can happen. When we were leading we should have make sure we defended well and at this level, you cannot make mistakes we committed in the goal we conceded."
Post A Comment!
Be the first to post a comment on this story