Surprise, Surprise, Ghana Battles To 2-0 Win Over Czech Republic Cologne, Germany -- (Sports Network) - In search of its first World Cup win in '06, Ghana battled to a 2-0 victory over the Czech Republic in a gritty and intense 90 minutes of soccer on Saturday.

The match took some odd turns, including a goal in the second minute, a missed penalty kick that deflected off the post and a red card to Tomas Ujfalusi of the Czech Republic. But despite the events, it was Ghana's first win of the tournament to keep the chances alive for any of the four teams in Group E.

The victory also helps the United States, who were defeated by the Czech Republic in the group's opening match and takes on Italy on Saturday.

Overall, Asamoah Gyan gave Ghana the early lead with a goal in the second minute and helped set up a goal for Sulley Muntari to give the team the exciting 2-0 win.

The first half hardly got off to a start before Ghana pounced on an early scoring opportunity to score the first goal of the match.

In just the second minute, Stephen Appiah sent a solid cross from the left side over to Gyan, who trapped the ball on his chest and drilled a low shot to the back of the net.

The match pace intensified following the goal, with both teams taking nearly equal control of the ball.

The Czech Republic found a chance for an equalizer in the 12th minute, when Pavel Nedved drilled a shot that fell right into the hands of Ghana goalkeeper Richard Kingston.

Muntari provided Ghana with an opportunity to double the score in the 23rd minute, but his shot from 30 yards out flew wide of the far post.

Both teams continued to battle, with the fast pace seeing a flurry of attacks from both sides. Overall, both teams combined for 16 total shots, with one on goal from each side by the end of the first half.

In the 46th minute, the Czech Republic opened the second half with a quick attack that nearly produced the equalizer before being flagged for offsides. Karel Poborsky sent a cross from the right side that Nedved managed to get his head on to send into the back of the net. The fans quickly began to cheer before the goal was called back.

In the 65th minute, Ghana was handed a chance to double the score, when Matthew Amoah was fouled inside of the penalty box by Ujfalusi. With the ball placed, Gyan took the penalty kick as the whistle was blown, sending the ball into the top right corner of the net. However, the shot was called back by referee Horacio Elizondo, who then issued a red card to Ujfalusi and then a caution to Gyan.

Following the ejection and the caution, Gyan was allowed to take the kick, which appeared to fool goalkeeper Petr Cech, but deflected off the right post and back into the penalty box, preserving the one-goal deficit.

Both teams continued to look for the goal, with Ghana appearing to take the majority of the opportunities. But it would be Ghana to capitalize one again as Muntari scored the team's second goal in the 82nd minute.

Muntari received a great pass from the right side of the penalty box. The midfielder received the ball, quickly turned and drilled a left-footed shot into the net to give Ghana the surprise 2-0 lead with little time remaining.

The Czech Republic, desperate for a goal, continued to push the attack, but failed to find a goal.