Andre Ayew scores brace for Le Havre on return from AFCON

Andre Ayew made an impressive return to club football after netting a double in Le Havre’s 3-3 draw with Lorient in Ligue 1.

The Ghana captain returned from his country’s disastrous 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) campaign last week and came on as a second-half substitute for Le Havre.

Ayew replaced Daler Kuzyaev in the 70th minute when his side were down 2-1 and grabbed the equaliser 15 minutes later with a towering header.

Lorient would, however, score again in the 92nd minute to go 3-2 up and were on their way towards an important victory when Ayew struck again.

The 34-year-old produced a moment of magic with literally the last kick of the game, as his acrobatic effort ended at the back of the net to ensure Le Havre had their share of the spoils.

This comes after Inaki Williams was also on the score sheet against Barcelona in the Copa del Rey barely 24 hours after returning to Athletic Bilbao from the AFCON.

The 29-year-old netted his ninth goal of the season as the Basque club knockout Xavi’s side out of the Copa del Rey last Wednesday.

Williams only returned to Spain on Tuesday, via a private jet, after Ghana’s exit was finally confirmed following Cameroon’s victory over Gambia.

The Athletic Bilbao forward started just one game in the Ivory Coast as the Black Stars failed to win a single match in a group that contained Egypt, Cape Verde and Mozambique.

Meanwhile, Ayew has also equalled the record for most games played in the history of the AFCON. Cameroon legend Rigobert Song was previously the sole record holder, having played 36 matches in the tournament.

However, Ayew became a joint holder of the record after making his 36th appearance in Ghana’s final AFCON group game against Mozambique.

He replaced Joseph Paintsil at half time but was powerless to stop Chris Hughton’s side from squandering a two-goal lead to draw 2-2 late in the game.

Ayew is also only the third player to feature in eight different AFCON tournaments. He joined Egypt’s Ahmed Hassan and Song in the exclusive list of players to have achieved this feat when he featured against Cape Verde in Ghana’s opening game of the 2023 AFCON.

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