The opening clash of Group D pitted the Black Stars of Ghana against Serbia (formerly Yugoslavia). It was a battle defined by attrition. Serbia played solidly while offering a few glimpses of attacking intent. The tone of the match was such that it needed a moment of brilliance or fortune to produce a result. Fortune came the way of the Black Stars after a penalty gave them a deserved 1-0 win that put them in a good position in Group D - one of the toughest groups at the 2010 World Cup.
The match began with shots at goal at either end in the opening minutes. There were a few promising attacks in the first 20 minutes, but these did not produce shots on target. Serbia was guilty of unfair aggression and picked up two yellow cards in the first 25 minutes. The Eastern Europeans tried to take advantage of two set plays in the 26th minute but failed to capitalize on the opportunity. Serbia had the better of the exchanges in the first half, which ended goalless. There was not enough creative play from the Ghanaian side and Serbia's final ball let them down.
The second half began promisingly, with slim chances falling to both teams in the opening minutes of the half. However, the play in the attacking third still left much to be desired. The match seemed destined for a goalless draw until referee Hector Baldassi made his first intervention in the 73rd minute. The Argentine referee booked Aleksandar Lukovic for holding back Gyan near to the halfway line. That was Lukovic's second bookable offence, so Baldassi sent him off and showed him the red card. While that call appeared to be a harsh one, Serbia had to play for 17-odd minutes with ten men.
In the 79th minute, Serbia had a good chance to go ahead, but Nemanja Vidic headed the ball over the crossbar from close range. The turning point in the match came when Serbian substitute Zdravko Kuzmanovic handled the ball outrageously in his own penalty area from a high Ghanaian cross. Despite his protestations, he was booked for unsporting behaviour and Bladassi penalized the Serbians by awarding a penalty.
Gyan sent the resulting penalty to the right of Vladimir Stojkovic in goal, giving the Ghanaians a 1-0 lead in the 83rd minute. Serbia had a couple more chances before the end of regulation time but failed to execute. Ghana surged into the lead on Group A, while Serbia faced a tough task ahead to reach the knockout round.
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