Burkina Faso vs Ethiopia: Stallions dominate but fail to break deadlock in first half | OneFootball

Burkina Faso vs Ethiopia: Stallions dominate but fail to break deadlock in first half

The first half ended in a goalless draw, 0-0, between Burkina Faso and Ethiopia. The Stallions controlled the tempo but failed to find the back of the net. Bertrand Traoré and Steeve Yago stood out as the brightest stars of the opening 45 minutes.

As promised by the national coach, Burkina Faso came out firing. The Stade du 4 Août was buzzing with excitement.

From the ninth minute, Bertrand Traoré was extremely active down the right flank and drew a foul. The resulting direct free kick by Aziz Ki towards the near post missed the target. The crowd ramped up their support as the Stallions kept up the pressure, pinning Ethiopia in their own half.

In the 31st minute, Dango Ouattara latched onto a long ball from Edmond Tapsoba. With a composed touch, he beat his marker and whipped in a cross into the box. Bertrand Traoré found space near the penalty spot but fired his shot over the bar.

The most dangerous chance came in the 38th minute. After a corner was cleared, Steeve Yago pounced on the ball and unleashed a shot that rattled the left post behind Ferew Getahun.Six minutes later, Bertrand Traoré dribbled past two Ethiopian defenders and stormed into the area, but the Stallions' captain sent his shot well off target.

The last real chance of the half fell to Steeve Yago, who came on unexpectedly in place of Brahima Traoré. In stoppage time, the Wydad Casablanca midfielder skipped past a defender inside the 18-yard box and struck with his left foot, but the Welayta keeper pulled off a superb save.