It is four wins and counting for holders Brazil at the 2006 FIFA World Cup™ after they beat Ghana 3-0 in Dortmund to book their place in the quarter-finals on Tuesday, 27 June 2006.
While Brazil advanced to a quarter-final against Spain or France in Frankfurt on Saturday, the talking point of this Round of 16 tie was the opening goal by Ronaldo with which the Brazil marksman wrote his name in the record books. Ronaldo's fifth-minute strike was his 15th in the FIFA World Cup, taking him past Germany's Gerd Muller as the most prolific scorer in the 76-year history of the tournament.
Ghana, the only African side to advance to the knockout rounds, pushed Brazil all the way in the opening period but after missing several chances to score, they conceded a second goal right on the stroke of half-time from Adriano. After losing Asamoah Gyan to a red card following a second bookable offence in the 81st minute, their fate was sealed when Ze Roberto added a third for Brazil three minutes later.
The summary of the match:
5': Ghana had the worst possible start when Brazil took an early lead as Ronaldo broke Gerd Muller's scoring record to become the FIFA World Cup's all-time leading marksman. A well-weighted pass from Kaka allowed him to sprint clear of Ghana's defence and a trademark step-over left Ghana goalkeeper Richard Kingson helpless on the ground before Ronaldo slid in his 15th goal in the history of the tournament. (1-0)
13': Ghana almost paid the price of having their defence caught flat-footed again when this time Adriano broke free and tried to take it past Kingson, but when he tumbled in the box under a challenge from the goalkeeper, the Brazilian was booked for diving.
19': This time the Brazilian goal came under threat when Haminu Draman fired a long-range effort at Dida, but he tipped it over the crossbar.
29': Ghana's Matthew Amoah turned well inside the area and shot at Dida but he gathered the ball comfortably.
30': Ronaldinho had Kingson scrambling with a shot from wide on the left almost level with the penalty spot, but he turned it round for a corner. The Ghana goalkeeper then saved well from Lucio's header and Ghana broke well, culminating in Drama's powerful shot which flew over.
35': A mistake by Juan on the left flank gave Ghana a great chance. The Brazilian's attempted clearance was blocked and fed to Asamoah Gyan, but he could not keep his shot down from close range.
42': John Mensah went extremely close to equalising for Ghana when his header from a corner seemed destined to go in but bounced back off Dida's legs. A lucky escape for Brazil.
45+1': After almost conceding, Brazil doubled their lead, once again after beating Ghana's vulnerable offside trap. Cafu raced down the right and his low centre across the box was turned in off his knee by the predatory Adriano who will never have an easier chance. (2-0)
Kingson saves
57': A threaded pass from Ronaldinho was picked up by Roberto Carlos and the Brazil full-back darted into the box and fired at goal, but Kingson blocked it with his legs.
68': Dida had to dive at full stretch to his left to beat out a stinging drive by Gyan and as Matthew Amoah looked to pounce on the rebound, the Brazil goalkeeper gathered it at the second attempt, though an offside flag had in any case been raised.
79': Gyan once again tested the keeper, but the Modena striker, back in the side after missing Ghana's last match through suspension, could only hit his shot straight at Dida.
81': Gyan was sent off after receiving a second yellow card for diving in the Brazil penalty box.
84': As Brazil strung passes together in their own half, seemingly content with their two-goal advantage, the crowd in Dortmund whistled their frustration, but the FIFA World Cup holders showed their class by creating the third. Ricardinho played a clever ball over the top of Ghana's backline and Ze Roberto beat the advancing Kingson, poking it past him on the edge of the area before he shepherded the ball into an empty net. (3-0)
88': Kingson's strong right-hand beat out a powerful goalbound shot by Ronaldo. Two minutes later he did the same thing to deny Cafu, who tried to chip him.
90+3': Kingson yet again saved well from close range, this time stopping Juan, who had been released by Ricardinho's backheel.

Brazil's Ronaldinho, left, is tackled by Ghana's Gyan Asamoah.	Brazil's Ronaldo, left, dribbles Ghana's goalie Richard Kingson to score for his team

In conclusion:
Ghana failed to pull off the shock that the romantics may have been hoping for but they can be well satisfied with their performance at their first ever FIFA World Cup. Brazil, as most perhaps expected, won through on an afternoon where the world champions' finishing power was the difference between the teams.

Thousands of football fans at Kadjebi poured onto the streets to celebrate the Black Stars 2-1 victory over the USA in Nuremberg booked their place in the Round of 16. As soon as the match ended with the hadly convincing 2-1 victory over the Americans counterparts, soccer fans on motorbikes, bicycles and vehicles swarmed the streets of the town to celebrate the sweet victory. Some supporters also decided to celebrate the victory by rushing into drinking spots and bars to cool themselves with drinks amidst singing and dancing. Sympa, bobobo, adowa and agbadza to exprime their intense joy.
Some of the fans that the GNA Sports spoke to expressed satisfaction at the performance of the team so far that has ensured the qualification of the nation to the next round against Brazil and called for more support to motivate the team to lift the flag of Ghana high in Germany.

The Ghanaians took the lead in the 22nd minute when Haminu Draman robbed Claudio Reyna of possession on the edge of the area and cooly slotted the ball past Kasey Keller.
Clint Dempsey's powerful finish two minutes before half-time gave the US hope of winning the match, but they were soon behind again through Stephen Appiah's penalty, scored in the second minute of added time at the end of the first half.
Try as they might after the interval, the US could not find a way past a stubborn Ghana rearguard and leave the tournament after claiming just one point from their three group games. For Ratomir Dujkovic's Black Stars, however, a match with the winners of Group F in Dortmund awaits.
The summary of the match
9': The first attempt at goal came from Ghana, with Michael Essien receiving a square pass in the box and firing wide.
15': It was an extremely physical match in the early stages, with each team picking up a booking in the first 15 minutes.
17': After winning a corner, the first effort on goal by the US was a header straight at the keeper by Clint Dempsey.
22': Five minutes later, Ghana opened the scoring. Draman dispossessed Claudio Reyna on the edge of the box and coolly slotted the ball past goalkeeper Kasey Keller at the far post. Worse yet, it was a double whammy for the Americans as their skipper was injured in the process. Although he soon returned, he was substituted before the end of the half. 1-0
30': Ghana almost added a second on the half-hour mark, Essien threading a ball for Razak Pimpong and the forward shot wide of the right post.
35': The US missed a golden chance to equalise when Brian McBride knocked a ball down for Landon Donovan to shoot from close range, but the LA Galaxy man blazed his shot over the bar.
43': The US levelled matters when DaMarcus Beasley won a ball in midfield and played it across the face of goal and Dempsey slammed it past Kingson. 1-1
45+2': But the Americans went from high to low within a matter of minutes when Oguchi Onyewu was penalised for pushing Pimpong in the area. Appiah was perfect from the penalty spot, giving Ghana the lead as they went into the interval. 2-1
Appiah's appetite for goals
55': A counterattack by Ghana ten minutes into the second half almost extended their lead, with a brilliant one-handed diving save by Keller denying Appiah.
60': The first quarter-hour of the second half was similar to the first 15 minutes of the first half, with a lot of physical play in midfield and few chances for either team.
66': The scoring frustrations of the US team were illustrated when Eddie Lewis did well to make space for a driven cross from the left and McBride's header hit the post.
67': The Americans went close with another header as Onyewu rose high into the air to meet a corner but saw his effort go just over.
80': After the two quick chances, the Americans began to attack with more passion than precision, repeatedly getting caught offside as they desperately tried to beat Ghana's trap.
83': Arena's side showed some life again after the introduction of Bobby Convey, but first Donovan and then Convey failed to deliver good balls with targets waiting inside the box.
90': With the desperation mounting for the US, Ghana almost added another when Alex Mensah-Tachie tried to deflect a driven pass on goal, but it went just wide of the left-hand post.

In conclusion:
As was the case in every game they played at Germany 2006, the US conceded the game's first goal. Although they managed to equalise as they did against Italy, the scoreline did not stay level for long, and they just did not have the firepower to overturn another deficit.

Finally one of the newcomers at this FIFA World Cup™ were able to celebrate a victory as Ghana made history by beating the Czech Republic 2-0 in Cologne on Saturday, 17 June 2006.
Asamoah Gyan and Sulley Muntari scored the goals that gave Ghana their first win on the world stage at the expense of a Czech side who played the closing stages with ten men after Tomas Ujfalusi's dismissal.
Ghana's triumph is the first for any of the debutants at Germany 2006 and also the first for any of the five African finalists. Their victory margin might have been greater had Gyan not struck a penalty against the post in the second half.
Gyan had earlier opened the scoring in the second minute before Sulley Muntari confirmed their success seven minutes from time. However, bookings here mean both scorers, together with Tomas Lokvenc and the dismissed Ujfalusi from the Czech team, will be suspended for their next matches.

Summary of the match :
2': Ghana got off to a fantastic start, scoring the earliest goal so far at Germany 2006. With just 70 seconds played a fine ball from captain Stephen Appiah picked out Gyan who took it under control beautifully on his chest and cracked home a low shot from just inside the penalty area.
3' Back came the Black Stars hungry for more and Matthew Amoah struck an effort wide from the edge of the penalty area after capitalising on slack marking in the Czech defence.
4': The Czechs sought a swift response but defender Marek Jankulovski, up supporting the attack, sent a low shot well off target from the edge of the box.
14': Far from overawed by playing a side ranked 46 places above them in the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking, Ghana went looking for a second and Appiah was close with a drive from 22 yards.
26': Ghana were continuing to cause problems for the Czechs and from a free-kick into his own penalty area, David Rozehnal sliced the ball over his own crossbar when attempting to clear.
29': Karel Poborsky – the only home-based player in the Czech team – had a clear chance to shoot inside the box but pulled a low effort wide of Richard Kingson's right-hand post.
34': There was a rare moment of concern for the Ghanaians as the ball fell to Tomas Rosicky, but his low shot was quickly charged down.
39': The game was being played at a fierce pace and Ghana created another chance with Appiah inches away with a low drive from the edge of the penalty area.

Ghana keep going:
46': In the opening seconds of the second half the Czechs thought they had found a way back into the game when Nedved headed in, but both he and Vratislav Lokvenc were offside the ball came in.
51': From a low goal-kick by Kingson, Gyan took control and ran straight at the heart of the defence, bringing a full-length save from Chelsea keeper Petr Cech – a clear sign that Ghana intended to carry on taking the game to their opponents.
56': A sweeping move brought the Czechs a chance of an equaliser, but Jaroslav Plasil shot well over from a narrowing angle when picked out deep inside the Ghana box.
65': Ghana swept forward into the Czech box where Amoah was brought down by Ujfalusi at the price of a penalty. Gyan stepped up to stroke the ball home, but referee Horacio Elizondo was busy showing the red card to the defender. He subsequently showed a yellow card to Gyan for taking the kick prematurely.
67': Gyan finally took the penalty but struck it against Cech's left-hand post.
73': Another great chance fell the way of Ghana, but Michael Essien delayed his shot a fraction and hit Cech with a low drive.
74': There was still a healthy pace to a really open game and Ghana were forced to defend, but not for long as they swept forward and twice in less than a minute Essien failed to covert eminently scoreable chances.
82‘: Finally a second goal did arrive as Gyan linked well with Muntari who blasted an unstoppable left-footed drive past Cech from 12 yards.
90': Two fine saves from Kingson deep in injury time prevented Libor Sionko and Jan Polak from scoring and set off wonderful celebrations in Cologne.
In conclusion:
Ghana's historic win gives them genuine hope of qualifying for the second round. In their final group game they will play the USA, while the Czechs – disappointing today without strikers Jan Koller and Milan Baros – will hope for better in their showdown with Italy in Hamburg.

Italy defeated African first-timers Ghana 2-0 in an exciting Group E fixture in Hanover on Monday, 12 June 2006.
A Ghana team making their FIFA World Cup™ debut contributed richly to the spectacle but Italy's greater know-how told as they won through goals from Andrea Pirlo and substitute Vincenzo Iaquinta.
After both sides had missed a succession of chances, Pirlo broke the deadlock with a shot through a crowded penalty area after 40 minutes. Iaquinta sealed the win after latching onto Samuel Kuffour's underhit back-pass with seven minutes remaining.

ITA : GHA, 12 June 2006, Hanover, Germany GYAN Asamoah (GHA)	ITA : GHA, 12 June 2006, Hanover, Germany ESSIEN Michael (GHA), ZACCARDO Cristian (ITA), DE ROSSI Daniele (ITA)

Summary of the match :
8': Italy rattled Ghana goalkeeper Richard Kingston with an early series of crosses and corners, culminating in defender Fabio Cannavaro heading the ball over the crossbar.
11': Ghana captain Stephen Appiah had a free-kick on the edge of the box in a promising position, but he struck it straight into Italy's wall. The Italians immediately launched a counterattack and when Luca Toni missed from point-blank range, the ball broke to Alberto Gilardino. He managed to squirm a shot through Kingston's legs but it trickled towards goal and hit the post before going out for another corner.
16': Francesco Totti, back in the Italy side after recovering from a broken leg, was almost unrecognisable with his new close-cropped haircut and there was an unfamiliar look to his first proper shot as it missed the target by some distance.
18': Italy's Alessandro Nesta had to climb high to flick the ball away from Borussia Dortmund striker Matthew Amoah, who would have had a free header on goal if Michael Essien's cross had managed to reach him.
27': Toni smacked a thundering shot against Ghana's crossbar and John Mensah chested the rebound back to Kingston to relieve the pressure.
30': Essien charged towards the Italy penalty area and launched a powerful strike which just missed Gianluigi Buffon’s right-hand post, matching a similar effort by Asamoah Gyan moments earlier from the opposite flank.
33': Totti found his range from 25 metres with a free-kick that stung Kingston's fingertips before it went over. Not for the first time, the Ghana keeper came out to meet the resulting corner and missed it, but Cannavaro's header landed on the top of the net.
40': Italy's tenth corner was played short to Pirlo who sent a scorching shot through a crowd of bodies to finally beat Kingston right in the corner (1-0).
45': Kingston did well to block a goalbound effort by Fabio Grosso.

Kingston clearance
53': Kingston had to rush out of his area to deny Toni and the Ankaraspor goalkeeper lifted the ball over his head and allowed John Pantsil to bring it to safety.
54': Ghana’s Essien brought the best out of Buffon, who had to dive at full stretch to his right to beat away a forceful drive from 20 metres out by the Chelsea midfielder.
64': With Italy less dominant than in the first half and the passionate Ghanaian contingent in full voice, Essien threatened again but this time he dragged his effort well wide after bursting forward.
67': As play flowed freely from end to end, Simone Perrotta tested Kingston with a shot from inside the area. Kingston will have gained great confidence from a strong save which denied the Roma midfielder, who appeared set to extend Italy’s lead.
79': Gyan had the Italian defence in knots with a twisting, turning run just outside the area. As he tried to move into the box, the Modena striker tumbled over the legs of two defenders but Brazilian referee Carlos Simon waved play on.
83': A mistake by the last defender Kuffour gifted Italy their second goal as he sold his goalkeeper short with a back-pass and substitute Iaquinta was only too grateful to latch onto it and round Kingston before sliding the ball into an empty net (2-0).
Conclusion : Italy got the better of Ghana in another entertaining, free-flowing contest, but the Africans acquitted themselves extremely well in their first appearance at the FIFA World Cup and a second-half equaliser always looked possible until Iaquinta finished them off.