Ghana’s hopes of making an immediate recovery in the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers suffered another setback on Tuesday after the Black Stars lost 4–2 to The Gambia at the Accra Sports Stadium.
The defeat means Ghana have now lost their opening two Group C matches, following a 2–0 defeat to Côte d’Ivoire in their first qualifier in Bouaké.
The Black Stars appeared to be in control after taking a commanding 2–0 lead, but The Gambia produced a strong comeback to turn the game around and leave Accra with all three points.
Ghana started the match with greater urgency and were rewarded in the 27th minute when Ernest Nuamah converted a penalty to put the Black Stars ahead.
Six minutes later, Felix Afena-Gyan doubled Ghana’s advantage with a well-taken free-kick, putting the hosts in a strong position at 2–0.
The Scorpions were awarded a penalty after a foul inside Ghana’s penalty area, and Ebrima Colley converted to reduce the deficit.
The visitors then found another goal before half-time to level the contest at 2–2.
The momentum shifted decisively in the second half as The Gambia continued to threaten the Ghanaian defence.
The Scorpions scored twice more to complete a remarkable comeback and secure a 4–2 victory.
For Ghana, what looked like a comfortable position after the first half-hour had turned into another disappointing result.
The defeat leaves Ghana with zero points from their first two Group C matches.
The Black Stars had entered the game looking to recover from their opening-day loss to Côte d’Ivoire, while The Gambia came into the encounter with three points already secured after beating Somalia 2–1 in their opening match.
The result gives The Gambia another valuable three points as Ghana now face an uphill task in their bid to qualify for the 2027 AFCON.
The top two teams in Group C will qualify for the tournament, which will be jointly hosted by Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania.
Another difficult night for Queiroz
The result also increases the pressure on Black Stars head coach Carlos Queiroz, whose team has yet to register a point in the qualifying campaign.
Ghana went into the match with several important players unavailable, while captain Alexander Djiku was also ruled out after suffering an injury during the defeat to Côte d’Ivoire. The Ghana Football Association confirmed that the defender had returned to his club, Spartak Moscow, for further assessment.
Queiroz had called on his players to improve their ball possession and finishing after the defeat in Côte d’Ivoire.
However, despite scoring twice, Ghana were unable to protect their advantage and eventually conceded four goals.
A major setback for Ghana
The Black Stars will now have to regroup quickly as the qualification campaign continues.
Having missed the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco, Ghana are seeking a return to the continental tournament in 2027.
But after two matches, the team has two defeats, no points and six goals conceded, leaving little room for further mistakes in the remaining fixtures.
The 4–2 loss to The Gambia will therefore be a particularly painful result for the Black Stars, who had home advantage and a two-goal lead but were unable to hold on.
