Ghana Strike Late to Defeat Panama in World Cup Opener

Ghana edged Panama 1-0 in their World Cup opener, with Caleb Yirenkyi tapping in a stoppage-time winner deep into the second half.

The breakthrough came in the fifth minute of added time when Brandon Thomas-Asante broke free on the left and drove a low ball across the box. Yirenkyi got to it first and turned it in, sparking a sprint onto the field from his teammates as Panama was denied a point in its tournament debut.

Chances were hard to come by for most of the match, played in the rain at BMO Field. Panama had the better of the early going, with Cecilio Waterman forcing the game's first real save in just the second minute, clipping a shot toward goal from a low cross by Amir Murillo. 

Ghana keeper Ati-Zigi got down well to push it away, though he did not make it through to the second half, going off at the break after taking a couple of heavy knocks. Benjamin Asare came on in his place.

The game stayed fairly quiet for the first hour before opening up, with both sides starting to test the goalkeepers more often. Ghana came closest around the 65th minute when Thomas-Asante slipped past Panama's defense and rolled a ball across the six-yard box for Jordan Ayew, only for Jiovany Ramos to recover and slide in from behind to stop the tap-in.

Ghana played the match without midfielder Thomas Partey, who was kept out of Canada while he awaits trial in England on rape charges.

The win moves Ghana level on points with England at the top of Group L, after England beat Croatia 4-2 earlier in the day.