Ghana will be desperate to breathe life into their 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign when they play host to Somalia at the Essipong Sports Stadium in the first of their Group C double-header on Thursday.

Having lost their first two matches, both nations are left with little room for mistakes and know Thursday’s result could prove decisive in shaping up their qualifying ambitions, and this makes for an exciting contest in Sekondi-Takoradi.

Match preview

Two games into the race for a spot in the 2027 AFCON, Ghana find themselves amongst nine sides yet to pick up any points in the qualifiers, with the federation parting ways with Portuguese coach Carlos Queiroz and opting for a change in ideas in the dugout.

Coming off the back of a round-of-32 defeat against Colombia in the World Cup back in June, the Black Stars kicked off their AFCON qualifying campaign with a 2-0 loss against Ivory Coast on September 24, with Malick Yalcouye and Franck Kessie netting on either side of half-time to hand the Elephants all three points.

Playing in front of the home supporters five days later, Ghana failed to make home advantage count in matchday two, when they fell to a 4-2 defeat at the hands of Gambia after squandering a two-goal lead at the Accra Sports Stadium.

Ernest Nuamah and Felix Afena-Gyan hit the target to put Ghana in the driver’s seat, but strikes from Muhammed Badamosi, Omar Colley, and a second-half brace from Konyaspor striker Ebrima Colley turned the game on its head for Gambia.

The four-time African champions have now gone eight straight games without a win in the Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, a run which saw them miss out on the 2025 AFCON, failing to feature in the continental showpiece for the first time since 2004.

Now tasked with restoring confidence and flipping the script, interim coach Kim Lars Bjorkegren faces a must-win assignment on Thursday as Ghana seek to avoid missing back-to-back AFCON tournaments for the first time since their three successive absences in 1986, 1988 and 1990.  

Like the home side, Somalia journey to the Essipong Sports Stadium with the same urgent need for a result if they are to turn their fortunes around and secure a first-ever qualification for the Africa Cup of Nations.

Having edged out Eswatini and Mauritius in the preliminary phase, the Ocean Stars fell to a 2-1 loss against Gambia in the Group C opener on September 25, with Ebrima Colley and Muhammed Badamosi netting on either side of Bilal Njie’s 72nd-minute equaliser to hand the hosts all three points at the Independence Stadium.

While there were positives to take from the defeat against Gambia, Somalia were left spitting feathers four days later, when they fell to a 2-0 defeat against Ivory Coast through strikes from Yann Gboho and Bazoumana Toure in the final six minutes at the Stade Felix Houphouet-Boigny.

Yusuf Ali’s men demonstrated their ability to rise to the occasion against quality opposition last time out when they pushed Ivory Coast to the limit, and they will have reason to believe they can upset the odds against a Ghana side currently far from convincing.

Ghana Africa Cup of Nations Qualifying form:

Ghana form (all competitions):

Somalia Africa Cup of Nations Qualifying form:

Somalia form (all competitions):

Team News

Newly-appointed Ghana boss Bjorkegren has called up 26 players to the squad for October’s double-header with Somalia, including the Premier League trio of Abdul Fatawu Issahaku, Brandon Thomas-Asante and Ibrahim Osman.

Having missed the first two qualifying matches through a groin problem, Jordan Ayew has been recalled to the squad, and the nation’s captain will hope his leadership and wealth of experience can count for something.

The Black Stars will also be lifted by the return of Tottenham forward Mohamed Kudus, who is set to make his first international appearance of the year after missing the World Cup through an injury.

Manchester City forward Antoine Semenyo missed out through a knee injury, while 31-year-old defender Jan Gyamerah, who made his debut against Mexico on May 26, is also ruled out through a muscle problem.

Before their late collapse, Somalia held their own against a superior and more experienced Ivory Coast side last time out, and we expect Ali to name a similar XI on Thursday, with Mohamed Mohamed, Abel Gigli, Ali Omar and Faisal Othman shielding 20-year-old Ibrahim Ahmed Hussein between the sticks.

With eight goal involvements in his last nine matches for club and country, KFUM Oslo striker Nije is currently in fine form, and the 28-year-old striker should lead the Ocean Stars attack once again, while Mohamed Omar, Abdi Sharif and Mukhtar Suleiman should team up in midfield.

Ghana possible starting lineup:

Ati-Zigi; Seidu, Adjetey, Salisu, Mensah; Partey, Yirenkyi; Kudus, Abdul Fatawu, Ayew; Thomas-Asante

Somalia possible starting lineup:

Hussein; Mohamed, Gigli, A. Omar, Osman; M. Omar, Sharif, Suleiman; Addo, Njie, Hassan

We say: Ghana 2-0 Somalia

Despite the quality in their rank, Ghana have failed an impression in the AFCON qualifiers so far, but victory on Thursday could provide the spark needed to turn their Group C campaign around.

Although Somalia have shown glimpses of their potential in their opening two matches, the difference in individual quality could prove a decisive factor here, with Ghana tipped to come away with all three points in front of their home supporters. 

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.