Sports
Justice Blay scores winner as Kotoko climb top; Legon Cities leap out of relegation zone as Hearts drop points
Asante Kotoko climbed to the top of the Premier League with a hard fought 1-0 win over Karela United at home on Sunday.
The hosts scored the only goal through midfielder Justice Blay. Blay scored from the spot kick in the 63rd minute to separate the two teams at the Baba Yara Stadium.
Dr Prosper Nartey Ogum will be pleased to return to the top of the table despite a less vintage performance against the Pride and Passion.
Kotoko have leapfrogged Gold Stars FC at the top with 34 points from 18 matches and looks to be in cruise control in their Premier League title ambition.
FC Samartex 1996 dropped valuable points at home after drawing 1-1 against Dreams FC on Sunday.
Alhassan Mankuyali Mohammed opened the scoring for the home side in the 48th minute before Joseph Esso pulled parity for the visitors at the Nsenkyire Stadium.
This is a massive result for the visitors who have struggled for form since the start of the season.
Despite the vital point on the road, Dreams gave dropped to the bottom three while lie 10th with 23 points.
Young Apostles recorded a narrow 1-0 win over Nsoatreman FC to triumph in the Bono derby on Sunday.
Emmanuel Fosu Kyei grabbed the headlines with the solitary goal of the match at the Wenchi Stadium. He scored 10 minutes into the second half to hand the side their fifth win of the season.
Apostles lie 11th with 21 points while Nsoatreman find themselves in the 14th position with 18 points from 18 games.
Basake Holy Stars forced out a goalless draw against Hearts of Oak in an exciting Premier League match at home on Sunday.
The Phobians failed to break a resolute Holy Stars down as the two teams shared the spoils at the AAK II Sports Arena.
Hearts, fifth in the table, trail leaders Asante Kotoko by four points with 30 points.
Berekum Chelsea recorded a second successive home win after a 1-0 success over Vision FC.
Emmanuel Sarpong’s 25th minute strike separated the two teams at the Golden City Park in Berekum.
Chelsea find themselves in eight position with 25 points while Vision lie 12th with 19 points.
Bechem United continued their impressive run of form after a decisive 2-0 win over Nations FC at home on Sunday.
A goal in each half helped the Hunters to the deserved victory at the Nana Gyeabour Park.
United scored first through Isaiah Nyarko in the 27th minute before Emmanuel Abban added the second in the 84th minute.
Nations have dropped to 4th while Bechem United lie 6th with 30 points.
Hearts of Lions returned to winning ways after a 2-1 with over Aduana FC on Sunday.
Kwesi Pong opened the scoring for Lions before Seedorf Asante made it 2-0 at the Kpando Stadium.
However, Akwasi Asante pulled a goal back for the visitors as they suffered their sixth defeat of the season.
Lions remain in third place with 33 points, while Aduana lie 13th with 18 points.
Legon Cities climbed above the relegation zone after a hard fought 1-0 win over Gold Stars FC at home on Sunday.
Fredrick Akatuk scored the only goal of the match in the 51st minute to lift the Royals just above the drop zone.
Yaw Acheampong’s men are determined to avoid the drop after an unflattering 2024-25 Premier League campaign.
The Royals lie above Dreams FC in 15th position while Gold Stars remain in second place.
Sports
‘Black Stars not there yet’
After seeing Mali undone by Alexander Djiku’s second half strike to give Ghana a 1-0 victory over Mali on Monday in a 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifier in Accra, Otto Addo gave his thoughts in the post-match press conference.
Below are excerpts.
On the game against Mali
You could see that we have a young squad and players who haven’t been playing often for the national team so far; that made them nervous. I think we got a good game.
We increased the pressure early in the second half, and managed to score out of a set piece. And then it was pure fight afterwards, especially the period after the goal.
On decision-making in the final third
I think if you have played before, you know that sometimes there’s a little bounce from the ball or the position is close and you think too much, I told them actually, but as a footballer, it’s normal that you try to look for a perfect solution.
Semenyo’s performance
He did really well, you know, it’s difficult to compare games from the Premier League with games in Africa and Ghana. It’s very, very difficult and then all games have their own nature and surely you can say that he stands more out in the Premier League, but for me today he was excellent, he fought until he couldn’t run anymore.
On Gideon Mensah
Well, I think sometimes he’s a little bit too confident and we had, especially after the Chad game, had some talks and for everyone who has played football on a higher level.
If he does it in La Liga, it’s fine because in La Liga, if you lose the ball to your opponent, he will counter-press you. He needs to simplify his game sometimes. Didn’t look too complicated, but it’s difficult sometimes if you’re coming from a different environment to switch your thinking.
On Kwasi Sibo’s performance
First of all, big congrats for him. I think he really did well. It’s not easy to come from a different environment to fit into the squad, but yeah, he knows a lot of players already in the team and he connected well. He’s very, very confident and I think he did extremely well, especially when you see that this was his first match. .
On Ghanaians being overly expectant
No, I think the expectations are normal. We are Ghana. For me, if everybody is talking before the Chad game that we already won and we are already taking the three points, it’s dangerous because if this gets to the heads of the fans, it’s a problem for me.
I’m warning everybody who think we have already gone to the World Cup to take things easy. It’s not like that. We have to give the same effort as today to beat Central African Republic. If we don’t do this, it’s a big problem. We have a lot of work to do. A lot of work. It’s going to be very, very difficult.
On goal scoring
You know, the last window, we scored eight goals. I think it was ok, but we can’t expect it all the time. So I hope that the players who missed the chances would score the next time. But it’s all about learning, improving and adapting always to the circumstances.
And I think in each situation, they could have taken one, two, three steps more or more time to look for the partner to have a better overview to give the right pass.
Sports
Black Queens Set to Face England Lionesses in International Friendly
The Black Queens will face the Lionesses of England in a high-profile international friendly on December 2,2025 per agreement between the Ghana Football Association (GFA) and the England Football Association.
After reaching the semi-finals at the 2024 WAFCON, the Black Queens are determined to build on that performance and establish themselves among the elite teams on the continent.
This match comes off as part of Ghana’s preparations for all international assignments, including the 2026 Africa Women’s Cup of Nations (WAFCON).
The fixture against England, one of the world’s top-ranked sides and reigning European champions, is expected to provide the Queens with a tough test that will sharpen the squad.
Head coach Kim Lars Björkegren will also seize the golden opportunity to measure the team’s progress, expose the players to world-class opposition, and correct areas that need improvement.
The Black Queens will head into the encounter motivated to put up a strong performance, not only to test their readiness but also to showcase the strides Ghana continues to make in women’s football on the international stage.
