Carlos Queiroz says Black Stars' defeat to Gambia does not make him a loser

Black Stars head coach Carlos Queiroz has rejected calls for his resignation following Ghana’s 2-4 defeat to The Gambia in the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, insisting that the setback should instead provide lessons for the team and his technical staff.

The Gambia produced a stunning comeback at the Accra Sports Stadium on Tuesday, overturning a two-goal deficit to condemn Ghana to their second consecutive defeat in Group C.

Ernest Nuamah opened the scoring from the penalty spot in the 27th minute before Felix Afena-Gyan doubled Ghana’s advantage with a powerful free-kick.

The Gambia responded before half-time, with Assan Ceesay converting a penalty before Omar Colley equalized in the 42nd minute.

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Colley then completed his hat-trick after the break as The Gambia scored twice more to secure a memorable 4-2 victory.

The result leaves Ghana without a point from their opening two Group C matches after the Black Stars also suffered a 2-0 defeat to Côte d’Ivoire in their opening qualifier.

Despite the disappointing start, Queiroz dismissed suggestions that resigning would be the solution to Ghana’s problems.

“When we have one result like this, and the option is to resign, it is the easiest solution,” he said.

“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. I don’t have that belief.”

The Portuguese coach acknowledged that his position ultimately rests with the Ghana Football Association and the results achieved by the team.

“That is a decision that should be for the board of the federation to analyze and decide with me. The future of one coach is always in the hands of God and the results,” he said.

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Queiroz also rejected the suggestion that the defeat to The Gambia should define his coaching career.

“And this defeat doesn’t make me a loser,” he said. “This defeat makes me more alert to the lessons that we take from the games and what we have to do in the future, with me or without me.”

The former Real Madrid and Iran coach said the Black Stars must learn from their setbacks and use the experience to improve in their remaining qualifying matches.

“You win, or you learn,” Queiroz said.

Ghana appeared to be in control after taking a 2-0 lead in the first half, but The Gambia's response completely changed the complexion of the game.

Queiroz said the Black Stars had performed better during the opening 45 minutes before mistakes allowed the visitors to regain momentum.

“In the first half we did it much better. We led the game; we controlled the game. We scored two goals when it was the belief of the staff, the players, and even the fans that we go for three or four,” he said.

The coach acknowledged that Ghana must respond quickly and address their weaknesses ahead of the remaining fixtures in the qualifiers.

“As a result, we cannot take a step back. But what we can do is to be better prepared and better organized for the next games and win the next games. This is what we have,” he said.

Ghana's defeat leaves the Black Stars under pressure after two successive losses at the start of their 2027 AFCON qualifying campaign.

The team will now have to regroup and improve their results in the remaining Group C fixtures if they are to keep their qualification hopes on track.