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Ghana Coach Carlos Queiroz Exits as Crisis Deepens

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1 hour ago

October 1, 2026

Queiroz leaves Ghana after a shock 4-2 defeat to The Gambia deepened the Black Stars’ AFCON qualifying crisis and ended his second spell

Carlos Queiroz, Ghana head coach, and the Ghana Football Association ended their professional relationship by mutual consent in Accra on Thursday, October 1, 2026, following the Black Stars’ damaging 4-2 defeat to The Gambia in a 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier.

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The decision came only 29 days after the Ghana Football Association reappointed the 73-year-old Portuguese coach for a new mandate following his first spell with the national team.

The immediate trigger was Ghana’s collapse at the Accra Sports Stadium on Tuesday, September 29, when the Black Stars surrendered a two-goal advantage and suffered their second consecutive defeat in Group C.

Ernest Nuamah opened the scoring from the penalty spot before Felix Afena-Gyan doubled Ghana’s lead.

The Gambia responded before half-time and eventually completed a striking turnaround to win 4-2.

The defeat followed a 2-0 loss to Côte d’Ivoire in Ghana’s opening qualifying fixture, leaving the Black Stars without a point from their first two matches.

The Ghana Football Association confirmed the departure on Thursday, saying both parties had agreed that ending the relationship was the appropriate course under the circumstances.

In his parting message, Queiroz said the decision was taken with the interests of Ghanaian football in mind.

“This was not an easy decision, but both parties agreed that, under the present circumstances, ending our professional relationship was the most appropriate course of action,” Queiroz said, according to the GFA.

He added that the necessary conditions for continuing the relationship had not been fully established and that the team’s recent performance contributed to the decision.

The departure marks a remarkably brief second spell for Queiroz, whose return had initially been presented as an opportunity to provide continuity after Ghana’s 2026 World Cup campaign.

The GFA reappointed Queiroz on September 2 after his initial mandate ended following the World Cup.

The association said at the time that his international experience, technical expertise and familiarity with the Black Stars made him suitable to lead the team into its next phase.

That World Cup campaign had offered a more encouraging backdrop.

Queiroz guided Ghana to the knockout stage of the 2026 World Cup, marking the Black Stars’ first appearance in the knockout rounds since 2010. Ghana were eventually eliminated by Colombia after a 1-0 defeat in the Round of 32.

The subsequent AFCON campaign, however, quickly changed the mood around the team.

Ghana travelled to Côte d’Ivoire for their opening Group C fixture on September 24 and lost 2-0 before returning home to face The Gambia.

Against The Gambia, Ghana appeared to have taken control after Nuamah and Afena-Gyan established a 2-0 lead. Two goals before the interval dramatically altered the match, with The Gambia adding further goals after the break.

Queiroz accepted responsibility immediately after the defeat and apologised to supporters.

“There is not much to say today after the terrible result for us. I, the staff, all the players, we are deeply sad with the result. And we have to say sorry to our fans, to our supporters, for what happened in the stadium,” he said.

The Portuguese coach had initially resisted calls for his resignation after the defeat, arguing that changing the coach alone would not necessarily address Ghana’s wider football problems.

“If you believe that with the coach resigning, you can change the situation of football in Ghana, I’ll be the first one to resign,” Queiroz said after the match.

His subsequent departure therefore came after the GFA and Queiroz reached a different assessment of what was required.

The coach also pointed to an unusually difficult injury situation, telling the GFA that Ghana were missing 24 players from the national team pool.

He specifically referred to injuries affecting several defenders and said some available players were not capable of playing a full 90 minutes.

Those circumstances provide additional context to a difficult start, although the results themselves left Ghana in a precarious position.

The Black Stars now have no points from two Group C matches and must recover quickly if they are to maintain their hopes of reaching the 2027 AFCON in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania.

The qualifying format leaves little room for a prolonged poor run, with Ghana needing a substantial improvement in their remaining fixtures.

The GFA must now find another coach while also attempting to restore confidence around a team that had only recently returned from a World Cup campaign.

Ghana’s next competitive assignments will be closely watched as the federation considers its options.

The Black Stars are scheduled to face Morocco in an international friendly on October 4, while their next AFCON qualifying fixtures are against Somalia in November, followed later by further meetings with Côte d’Ivoire and The Gambia.

For Ghana, the challenge is no longer simply replacing Queiroz. The federation faces the broader task of stabilising a national team that has moved from the optimism of a World Cup knockout-stage appearance to the pressure of an early AFCON qualifying setback within a matter of weeks.