Ghana Beats Panama 1-0 on Late Goal in World Cup Opener

Ghana secured a dramatic 1-0 victory over Panama in their Group L World Cup opener on Wednesday night at BMO Field in Toronto, with Caleb Yirenkyi scoring in the fifth minute of second-half stoppage time. The goal came after Brandon Thomas-Asante broke free on the left side and sent a cross across the goal mouth, which Yirenkyi tapped in to send Ghana's players streaming onto the field in celebration.

Both teams struggled to create clear chances throughout the match, with the only first-half shot on goal coming from Panama forward Cecilio Waterman, whose effort was saved by Ghana goalkeeper Lawrence Ati-Zigi. Ati-Zigi left the game at halftime after two hard collisions, replaced by Benjamin Asare.

The match opened up in the second half as both sides pushed for a breakthrough. In the 65th minute, Thomas-Asante played a ball across the six-yard box toward Jordan Ayew, but Jiovany Ramos intervened with a tackle to prevent the tap-in.

Ghana played without midfielder Thomas Partey, who was denied entry into Canada while he awaits trial on rape charges in England.

Panama manager Thomas Christiansen called the late defeat "cruel" and a "gut punch." The loss denied Panama its first-ever World Cup point; the 34th-ranked team has now only scored twice and has yet to earn a point in four World Cup matches. Ghana now sits top of Group L alongside England, who beat Croatia 4-2 earlier in the day.

Panama faces Croatia in a must-win match on Wednesday at Toronto Stadium, with both teams looking to bounce back from opening defeats. Croatia has lost the opener in four of its seven World Cup appearances but has only lost back-to-back matches once. The match is critical for both sides as they seek to improve their standings in Group L.