Austria thrashes Ghana in international football friendly

VIENNA, March 27 (Xinhua) -- Austria dominated the second half in a 5-1 victory over Ghana in an international friendly in Vienna on Friday.

Captain Marcel Sabitzer earned Austria the lead in the 13th minute through a penalty after Ghana's Jonas Adjetey handled the ball.

Despite improving its game, Ghana failed to find the equalizer before halftime.

Austria mounted incessant pressure on the Ghanaian defense in the second half, with Michael Gregoritsch and Stefan Posch scoring in the 51st and 59th minutes, respectively.

Ghana captain Jordan Ayew pulled one back for his side in the 77th minute, but the host restored a three-goal cushion two minutes later through Carney Chukwuemeka and added another in injury time through Nicolas Seiwald.

Ghana will play Germany in another friendly on Monday as part of its preparations for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, where it is drawn in Group L along with Panama, England and Croatia.