Ghana lost to Côte d’Ivoire and then threw away a two-goal lead against The Gambia, leaving the four-time champions pointless and without a head coach.
Ghana's Black Stars have opened their qualifying campaign for the next Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) with two losses in the space of five days, leaving the team at the bottom of Group C with no points.
The first setback came against Côte d'Ivoire, who led at the break and then doubled their advantage early in the second half through a Franck Kessié penalty. The match finished 2-0.
A two-goal lead thrown away
The second match was harder to take. Ghanaian Times reports that Ghana raced into a 2-0 lead at home to The Gambia, with Ernest Nuamah converting from the penalty spot and Felix Afena-Gyan adding a second just six minutes later.
The lead did not hold. Badamosi pulled one back from a penalty, and O. Colley levelled the scores five minutes afterwards, making it 2-2 before half time. After the break, Ebrima Colley scored twice, the second of them in the closing minutes, to complete a 4-2 win for the visitors.
For The Gambia, seeded third in the group, it was a near-perfect window. They had already beaten Somalia in their opening fixture, so the win in Ghana left them on six points from two matches.
Coach out, search committee in
The reaction was immediate. At the start of October, the Ghana Football Association and head coach Carlos Queiroz agreed to end their working relationship. The federation said it took full responsibility for the poor start and set up a five-member committee to find a replacement.
That committee was given only a few days to report back to the sports ministry, an unusually short deadline that signals how urgently the post is to be filled.
How the group works
Group C is made up of Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, The Gambia and Somalia. Each side plays six matches, home and away against the other three. The top two go through to the 24-team finals.
Matchdays three and four fall in the November window, with the final two matches set for March 2027. That means four games remain, and the gap, while real, is not yet decisive.
What it means
For Ghanaian fans at home and in the United States following from afar, the concern is less about the attack than the defence. Ghana scored twice in two matches but conceded six, and both of its goals came inside the opening half hour of the Gambia game before the attack went quiet.
The weight of expectation is part of the story. Ghana has won the AFCON four times and missed the last edition of the tournament, which made this campaign the intended route back. Whoever takes charge next will inherit a squad that can score, a defence that needs fixing, and four matches that now all carry extra pressure.
