The Black Stars boosted their World Cup qualification hopes with a 1-0 win thanks to a first half free kick from Thomas Partey.

Partey, who was given the armband due to the absence of main skipper Andre Ayew, showed his prowess from dead ball situations in the 31st minute.

Amartey saw his effort cleared off the line late in the first half and Mohammed Kudus’ second half effort came off the woodwork.

The result takes Ghana to nine points and first place in Group G, two points above second placed South Africa, who have played a game less.

Here is how Joy Sports rated the players;

Jojo Wollacott-2.5

The Swindon Town shot stopper was the opposite of the previous game on Saturday. He was nervy throughout, making some key errors which would have been costly against a better side. Wollacott was lucky not to give a penalty away in the first half.

Abdul Baba Rahman-2.5

Baba Rahman showed some willingness going forward. However, his final ball left a lot to be desired, especially in the first half. With Gideon Mensah waiting in the wings, he would have to step things up.

Jonathan Mensah-3.5

The US-based center-back also looked different as compared to the previous encounter in Cape Coast. He showed some nervousness during the game, leading to some surprising errors.

Alexander Djiku-4.5

Djiku was the calmer of the two central defenders, taking on his assignment with real quality throughout the game. He has seemingly etched his name on the team sheet for the foreseeable future.

Daniel Amartey-2.5

Amartey, despite being the more defensive option among the full backs, struggled to deal with his opposition winger as most of Zimbabwe’s chances came from the right. He almost got on the scoresheet but unfortunately, his shot was cleared off the line.

Baba Iddrisu-5

The Real Mallorca man was relatively solid defensively and linked up well with other players further up the pitch. There seems to be a potentially good partnership between him and Partey.

Thomas Partey-6

The Arsenal man was given the armband after Andre Ayew found himself on the bench for this game and led by example with the opening goal of the game. Partey powered one in from a free-kick, giving his side the lead against the run of play.

Jordan Ayew-3

Jordan put in a shift on the defensive end. However, the Crystal Palace man struggled to affect the game on the offensive end. He barely made runs in behind or run at his man when he got the ball.

Mohammed Kudus-5.5

In the first half, Kudus generally struggled to control the tempo of the game. This slightly changed in the final half as the Ajax man kept things ticking in midfield.

Kamaldeen Sulemana-4

Kamaldeen was a real menace against the Warriors on the left side of the pitch, running at his opposition left back at every opportunity and creating chances. There is certainly room for improvement but the signs are promising.

Benjamin Tetteh-2

The Turkey-based striker was given his first start in the Black Stars shirt after a promising cameo on Saturday. He relatively struggled throughout this game with aerial duels, first touch and finishing. Tetteh negatively affected the team’s progression and would need to improve dramatically.

Daniel-Kofi Kyereh-1.5

Kyereh was brought on to replace Kamaldeen Sulemana as the coaches’ way of injecting more energy to the pitch. The forward narrowly missed a great effort to double the lead for the Black Stars.

Joseph Aidoo-1

The Celta Vigo man replaced the injured Djiku late in the game and almost gave away a goal. He would have to improve as Djiku is expected to miss the next game due to suspension.

Andre Ayew-N/A

Caleb Ekuban-N/A

Samuel Owusu-N/A

Milovan Rajevac-5

The Serbian varied his tactics for this game and his team were able to relatively stifle the attack of the Warriors. However, the team failed to keep the ball as much as they did on Saturday.