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Hosts Ghana earned a 2-1 victory against Guinea in their Africa Cup of Nations Group A opening game and PSV defender Eric Addo is relieved that Ghana have started the prestigious tournament brightly. 'The pressure will no longer be on Ghana in particular, but on the countries that still have to feature as well.'
Morocco thrashed Namibia 5-1 in the other group A game on the tournament's second match day, with Soufiane Alloudi scoring a hat trick.
Ivory Coast set off their African Cup of Nations campaign with a well-deserved 1-0 win in their Group B opening game against fellow favourites Nigeria in Sekondi, 150 kilometres west of the capital Accra. Salomon Kalou scored the only goal of the game after 66 minutes. Arouna Koné did not leave the bench, but as soon as the final whistle had gone, the former PSV striker rushed to his team mate Kalou, who was all smiles when he took the celebrations.
Mali secured three points with a 1-0 win against Benin in the other Group B fixture. The match at the brand-new Sekondi stadium started fifteen minutes late after a power failure turned off the floodlights. Benin, who had searched the internet to recruit a team, put in a decent display, but Kanoute ended their hopes when he converted from the penalty spot after 49 minutes.
The atmosphere in Accra is simply outrageous and football comes first and foremost in Ghana's capital. Screens are put up in several places, so people can watch all the matches live. The main topic of conversation is the Africa Cup of Nations. Eric Addo said there were smiles and sighs of relief after the Black Stars' had picked up the three points in their opening African Cup of Nations match against Guinea in Group A on Sunday. 'It's a good start for us. There were nerves, so we're happy we won. This will help our confidence,' said Addo.
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