Forward Andre Ayew admits Ghana had to dig deep to put away a determined Comoros side in the 2018 World Cup qualifier on Tuesday.

The Black Stars were made to work for a 2-0 win to progress to the group phase of the qualifiers before an expectant crowd at the Baba Yara Stadium in Kumasi.

Goals in each half from Mubarak Wakaso and Jordan Ayew handed Ghana the deserved win but not without a good fight from the Comorians.

Ghana, with a star-studded team was expected to steamroll over the lowly-rated Comoros but it turned out to be a much more competitive fixture.

And Black Stars deputy captain Andre Ayew concedes they played against a really tough side that were high on motivation.

It was a very difficult game. I think we played against a side that had nothing to lose, Ayew said after the game.

The most important thing was to get the win and we did that.

Ghana will now be joining 19 other African countries in a FIFA draw for the group phase of the qualifiers.

The team will be put in four groups of five with the eventual winners of each group qualifying to represent Africa at the next World Cup in Russia.