Injured Michael Essien makes it to the Estadio 11 de Novembro in Luanda to cheer on Ghana in a crucial African Nations Cup final Group B game against Burkina Faso.

The midfielder, who faces an anxious wait to learn the extent of a knee injury has been ruled out of the Nations Cup yesterday with medial knee ligament damage after twisting his knee during training on Sunday.

But Essien, joined the Ghana coach and arrived at the match venue in Luanda on crutches to rally Ghana on to victory.

He could only manage 45 minutes of match action in Ghana's opening 3-1 loss to Ivory Coast last Friday when he came off the bench after having recovered from a hamstring injury.

With the group reduced to three teams due to the withdrawal of Togo following a deadly attack on their team bus last week, the Black Stars have one last opportunity to ensure progress after the defeat in Cabinda.

A draw for the Burkinabe would see them through to the knock-out stages.