The Gambia beat Ghana 4-2 in Accra as Black Stars lose again in AFCON qualifying

Pinned summary · as of 15:29

Ghana lost 4-2 to The Gambia in Accra on Tuesday, 29 September, despite leading by two goals, in a Group C qualifier for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations played at the Accra Sports Stadium. It is the Black Stars' second defeat in as many games, leaving them pointless at the foot of the table. Coach Carlos Queiroz had urged supporters before kick-off to back the players he had available.

What we know

• The Gambia won 4-2 away to Ghana in Accra on Tuesday, 29 September 2026, in Group C of qualifying for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations.
• Ghana led first, when Ernest Nuamah scored from the penalty spot in the 27th minute, and Felix Afena-Gyan added a free-kick a few minutes later. The Gambia then scored four times without reply.
• Mohammed Badamosi reduced the deficit from the penalty spot for The Gambia, and Omar Colley made it 2-2 shortly before the break.
• After two rounds Ghana have no points and sit at the bottom of the group, while The Gambia, who had beaten Somalia 2-1 in their opener, top it with six.
• Ghana's first qualifier was a 2-0 loss to Côte d'Ivoire in Bouaké on 24 September.
• Alexander Djiku, the Spartak Moscow defender, was taken off in the 71st minute in Bouaké, flew back to his club for assessment and was ruled out of the Gambia game.
• Mohammed Kudus, Jordan Ayew and Antoine Semenyo were also absent from the Ghana side, and Ghana Sports Page attributed the absences to injuries.
• The Gambia were short of some important players too, among them the winger Yankuba Minteh.
• Morocco's Mustapha Kechchaf refereed the match. His assistants were Lahsen Azgaou of Morocco and Yassine Saadaoui of Tunisia, with Amir Loucif of Tunisia as fourth official. Liberia's Sekou Wieh Konneh was match commissioner, Nigeria's Abel Baba the referee assessor and Ghana's Danny Adotey the broadcast venue manager.
• Before the game Mr Queiroz asked fans to back his available squad. “Come to support the players that are here to play for Black Stars,” he told reporters, according to The Vaultz News.
• Mr Queiroz also said Ghana wanted to hold on to the ball and attack with a positive mindset in order to score.
• Ghana did not take part in the previous Africa Cup of Nations, staged in Morocco.

What's disputed / unconfirmed

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  Reports differ on who scored The Gambia's last two goals. MyJoyOnline credits Ebrima Colley with the 68th-minute strike and another in injury time, SportsWorldGhana also names Ebrima Colley for the third but leaves the fourth scorer unnamed, and Rainbow Radio Online says Omar Colley scored both to complete a hat-trick.
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  Accounts of Ghana's captaincy conflict. MyJoyOnline names Jordan Ayew as captain with Alexander Djiku and Thomas Partey as vice-captains, whereas The Vaultz News, The Ghana Report, SportsWorldGhana and MyNewsGH describe Djiku as captain. The Custodian calls Gideon Mensah the Ghana captain who gave away the Gambian penalty.
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  MyNewsGH alone quoted Mr Queiroz as saying 22 players were fit and that Ronald Donkor was the only doubt, adding that he hoped Donkor could be on the bench. Pulse Ghana repeated the 22-player figure.
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  MyNewsGH named Musa Barrow, Abdoulie Manneh and Adama Sidibeh as further Gambian players ruled out through injury; Pulse Ghana repeated this, and no other independent source has confirmed it.
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  Abdul Jammeh, The Gambia's assistant coach, said his side had lost five players who had scored 24 national-team goals in recent months and that his absentees mattered more than Ghana's. Only MyJoyOnline carried the remarks.
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  SportsWorldGhana alone reported that Mr Queiroz changed his line-up, starting Benjamin Asare in goal along with Jonas Adjetey and Afena-Gyan, and cited match data giving Ghana about 71% of possession and nine shots to six. YEN.com.gh had predicted a different starting side, with Lawrence Ati-Zigi in goal.
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  The Custodian, whose reporting is not independent, says the match was Mr Queiroz's first as Ghana coach on home soil, that Ghana's winless run in Africa Cup of Nations qualifying now stands at eight matches and that Ghana have conceded six goals in two games. No independent source has reported these details.
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  Only MyJoyOnline reported that Ghana's next qualifier is against Somalia in November. The Publisher Online quoted National Sports Authority Director General Yaw Ampofo Ankrah as saying Accra will stage both meetings between Ghana and Somalia, but it gave no dates.
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  Ghana Sports Page reported on 17 September that Ghana would play Morocco in a friendly in Tangier on 4 October after a Tanzania fixture fell through; no other source has reported this.

Why it matters for Ghana

Ghana have started their qualifying group with two defeats and no points, and The Gambia now lead the table, so the Black Stars begin the rest of the campaign from the bottom. Ghana also missed the last tournament, so supporters in Accra, Kumasi and beyond will be looking to Mr Queiroz for a recovery. With Djiku, Kudus, Ayew and Semenyo among the players missing, the coach has had fewer options to choose from.