Asante Kotoko fought back with 10 men to secure a 1-1 draw at home against Karela United to wrap up match-day 22 of the 2021/22 Ghana Premier League (GPL) Thursday night.
The league leaders were sharp in creating chances in the early exchanges but were not clinical enough in front of goal.
And that cost them halfway through the first half when Karela began to come much into the picture.
In one of the visitors’ forays, former Kotoko forward Matthew Kelvin Andoh tore away from the centre-backs and was clear on goal but Abdul Ganiyu Ismail chose to commit a red card offence by fouling him from behind just in front of the penalty box.
The Kotoko captain received a straight red card for his troubles in the 28th minute.
Not long after, the Porcupine Warriors went trailing as tormentor-in-chief Kelvin Andoh found himself free to head home the opener from a cross in the 36th minute.
Kotoko, however, responded to that setback and got on level terms in the final minute of first-half added time through a calm finish from close range by the league’s top scorer Franck Thierry Etouga Mbella, taking his tally to 15.
Both sides would get chances to win it in the second half but no goal was further produced. Coach Propser Narteh Ogum’s dominated the second half despite playing with a numerical disadvantage.
Asante Kotoko, now on 46 points, maintain their 8-point lead as all Top-4 teams interestingly all drew in their respective games in this round. Karela United are in 9th position with 30 points.
Midfielder Mudasiru Salifu of Kotoko won the NASCO man-of-the-match award.
