Black Stars humiliated 4-2 by Gambia at home
Ghana’s 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign plunged into crisis on Tuesday night after the Black Stars surrendered a 2-0 lead to suffer a humiliating 4-2 defeat to The Gambia at the Accra Sports Stadium.
What started as a much-needed response after last Thursday’s 2-0 loss to Côte d’Ivoire in Bouaké turned into one of the national team’s worst home defeats in decades, leaving Ghana pointless and bottom of Group C after two matches.
Head coach Carlos Queiroz made three changes from the side beaten in Bouaké, bringing in goalkeeper Benjamin Asare, Felix Afena-Gyan and Jonas Adjetey.
Ghana dominated possession early in front of fewer than 10,000 fans but struggled to create clear chances against a compact Gambian defence.
The breakthrough came in the 27th minute when Jerome Opoku was brought down in the box. Ernest Nuamah stepped up and calmly converted the penalty for 1-0.
Six minutes later, Afena-Gyan won a foul just outside the area and curled in a superb free-kick to make it 2-0. The stadium erupted, with the Black Stars seemingly in full control.
But the game turned dramatically before half-time. Gideon Mensah conceded a penalty in the 37th minute, allowing Muhammed Badamosi to pull one back for the Scorpions.
Five minutes later, Musa Barrow’s delivery found captain Omar Colley, who finished clinically to make it 2-2 and stun the home crowd.
Ghana started the second half brightly in search of a winner, but it was Gambia who struck again. A costly error by captain Mensah gifted substitute Ebrima Colley the chance to make it 3-2 in the 68th minute.
As the Black Stars pushed forward, angry home supporters threw bottles onto the pitch in the closing stages. Gambia sealed the famous win in stoppage time when Colley grabbed his second to complete a remarkable turnaround.
Queiroz Takes Blame
A visibly disappointed Queiroz apologised to fans after the match and accepted full responsibility.
“There is not much to say today after the terrible result for us. We are deeply sad with the result, and we have to say sorry to our fans and supporters for what happened in the stadium,” he said.
“If there is one person who takes responsibility for the result, it is me. If you want to blame and criticise, you can question me as the coach. Please keep supporting your players.”
Captain Gideon Mensah also admitted the players must take responsibility: “We are the players and we’re supposed to accept whatever comes from the people that we play for.”
The defeat extends Ghana’s winless run in AFCON qualifiers to eight matches. The Black Stars have not won an AFCON qualifier since beating Central African Republic 2-1 on September 7, 2023, and missed the 2025 tournament in Morocco after a winless campaign.
Ghana will now turn attention to October’s double-header against Somalia at the Accra Sports Stadium as they fight to revive their qualification hopes for the 2027 finals to be co-hosted by Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.
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