Ghana vs Central Africa Republic Prediction: Ghana must take advantage of this match

On Thursday, the final round of group-stage games for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations will begin, and Group E leaders Ghana will face off against the Central African Republic, which is currently in third place in the group. A spot in Ivory Coast is very much up for grabs as both teams are separated by just two points, and this makes for an exciting match at the Baba Yara Sports Stadium.

Ghana - home team are the better side

At the Kianja Barea Mahamasina on June 18, Ghana and Madagascar played to a scoreless draw, giving both teams a portion of the victory. This was the second consecutive game in which Ghana and Madagascar shared the spoils. Despite having over 60 percent of the ball possession and being in the lead for the majority of the game, Chris Hughton's team conceded a draw after failing to threaten the goalkeeper in the box. Ghana qualified for the tournament without suffering a single loss; however, they have drawn three of their previous four matches in Group E, including a 1-1 tie with the Central African Republic in June 2022. The Black Stars are now in first place in Group E after collecting nine points over their previous five qualifying matches, one point ahead of Angola in second place and two points ahead of the team that will be visiting on Thursday. After playing two matches away from home, Ghana is now back on their home turf, where they are now riding a winning streak of seven matches in a row that began with a scoreless draw against West African rivals Nigeria in March of 2022. The West African superpower has participated in nine consecutive editions of the AFCON since 2006, and they need at least a draw on Thursday in order to ensure that they will participate in the continental extravaganza for a tenth consecutive time.

Central Africa Republic - a must win contest for the visiting side

The Central African Republic has put together a respectable qualifying campaign and is now just one victory away from making their debut at the Africa Cup of Nations. After beginning play in Group E in June 2022 with a 2-1 loss to Angola, the team captained by Raoul Savoy was able to turn things around and win three of their next four matches, accumulating seven points out of a possible nine. During this run, the Central African Republic defeated Madagascar both at home and on the road, scoring five goals and holding two clean sheets against Romuald Rakotondrabe's team. However, on June 17, Angola defeated Les Fauves 2-1 at the Stade de la Reunification, preventing Les Fauves from claiming a third victory in a row. Kialonda Gaspar and Milson scored for Angola, whereas Kialonda Gaspar and Milson scored for the Black Sable Antelopes. Central African Republic have struggled for results away from home, as they have won just one of their last six matches while losing four and gaining one draw since October 2021. However, if they win on Thursday, they will be guaranteed a spot in the African Cup of Nations for the very first time.

Head-Head Statistics

The first time these two teams competed against one another was in the match that was played in Luanda the year before, and it ended in a 1-1 draw. Ghana is one of three teams that have yet to suffer their first loss in the qualification cycle they are participating in. It's interesting to note that after five games in the qualifiers, the away team has a better scoring record than the home team, 8-6. When it comes to defense, the home team has an advantage over the visitors because they have only given up two goals, while the guests have allowed five goals during that time frame. The home team has gone winless in their last eight matches at home in all competitions, but they have won seven of those matches.

Expert Betting Tips

The Black Stars have qualified for the tournament proper in each of the last nine matches of the competition and now need only one point to secure their spot in the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations. They have gone the first several rounds of the qualifying competition undefeated, and both of their victories up to this point have come in their own stadium. The Fauves have had a successful start to their qualifying campaign, compiling a record of two wins and three losses from their first five matches. They won their most recent game on the road against Madagascar in March by a score of 3-0, and they will attempt to keep up that level of play in this contest. In spite of this, the home team has picked a good lineup for the match, and taking into account the fact that they will be playing at home, we believe Ghana will pull out a close victory.