Caleb Yirenkyi makes World Cup history by breaking Asamoah Gyan’s record for Ghana

Black Stars midfielder Caleb Yirenkyi wrote his name into Ghanaian football history on Wednesday after scoring a dramatic stoppage-time winner against Panama in their 2026 FIFA World Cup opener.

The youngster struck deep into added time to break a tense 0–0 deadlock at BMO Field in Toronto. The goal secured all three points for Ghana in Group L and immediately confirmed Yirenkyi as the match hero on his World Cup debut stage.

Yirenkyi, aged 20 years and 153 days, became the youngest player in Ghana’s history to score at a FIFA World Cup.

He broke the long-standing record held by legendary striker Asamoah Gyan, who was 20 years and 207 days old when he scored against the Czech Republic at the 2006 World Cup.

The Black Stars midfielder also joined an elite list of Ghanaian World Cup scorers, becoming the 10th different player to score for the country at the tournament, taking Ghana’s total World Cup goals to 19.

For context, Mohammed Kudus remains the third-youngest Ghanaian scorer, having netted at 22 years and 118 days during the 2022 World Cup against South Korea.

Yirenkyi’s decisive strike not only secured all three points for Ghana but also gave the Black Stars a strong start to their Group L campaign.

Ghana now turn their attention to a crucial second group match against England on June 23 in Boston before concluding their group stage against Croatia on June 27.