Hearts of Oak have secured a slim advantage towards qualifying for the group stages of the CAF Champions League after recording a narrow victory over Wydad Athletic Club.
A late first-half strike from Isaac Mensah was enough to give Hearts a narrow advantage ahead of the second leg in Casablanca.
Samuel Boadu’s side had to survive an early onslaught after Wydad Athletic Club started the game on the ascendency.
The Moroccan side, who came into the game without defeat from open play since July, enjoyed the larger share of possession and looked more comfortable in the opening 10 minutes.
Despite their dominance, Wydad couldn’t get the better of Hearts’ defence, with the Phobians coming into their stride in the final 15 minutes.
Kofi Kordzi was the first to go close when he found space to shoot but his effort was way off target.
Two minutes later, in the 41st minute, Salifu Ibrahim picked up the ball on the left flank and swung in a perfect cross, to which Mensah reacted quickest to volley the ball home.
Wydad nearly equalised immediately but their strike failed to direct the ball towards goal when he was left unmarked in Hearts’ box.
Daniel Afriyieh Barnieh and Kordzi were Hearts’ main threats in the second half and the latter was unfortunate to end the game with an assist, as his fantastic cutback was spurned by Salifu, who blasted the ball way off target.
Despite the Moroccan side upping the ante in the final 20 minutes, Hearts held on to record a narrow 1-0 win.
The result means the Ghana Premier League champions will take a slim advantage into the second leg in a fortnight.
