Mali beats Ghana 2-0 for 3rd place at African Cup

Malabo (Equatorial Guinea): Mali beat 10-man Ghana 2-0 Saturday in the third-place match at the African Cup of Nations for its best finish since it lost the 1972 final.

Cheick Diabate scored twice for Mali, which avenged its 2-0 defeat to Ghana in the group stage. Ghana ended with successive losses after its surprising loss in the semifinals to Zambia. Diabate pounced on a rebound to put Mali ahead in the 23rd minute and then slid in for the goal that sealed victory with 10 minutes left. Ghana`s Isaac Vorsah was ejected in the 64th minute. Four-time champion Ghana has finished third, second and fourth in the last three African Cups and hasn`t won the title for 30 years. In Libreville, Gabon, on Sunday, Ivory Coast is favored to win its second African Cup title when it plays Zambia. Bureau Report