Ghana men’s national football team suffered a 2-0 defeat to Mexico on the early hours of Saturday morning. The Black Stars, who were preparing for the upcoming 2026 World Cup, were beaten by their more clinical hosts at a packed Estadio Cuauhtémoc.
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The high intensity friendly saw the Black Stars being punished for a slow start in the opening minutes and lack of precision in front of goal in the second half. Mexican midfielder Brian Gutiérrez found space outside the penalty area and unleashed a powerful shot into the bottom right corner, with just two minutes into the game.
The stunned Ghana players struggled to find momentum, and defender Oscar Oppong earned a yellow card for a reckless challenge on El Tri prodigy Gilberto Mora in the 13th minute.
Mexico nearly doubled their lead in the 21st minute when Mora, who was a constant menace to the Black Stars’ defence, made a right-footed strike that rattled the right post. Armando González had a rebound but Ghana goalkeeper Benjamin Asare reacted superbly to save the close-range effort.
The Black Stars produced a dominant display in the first 10 minutes of the second half. Mexican goalkeeper Carlos Acevedo was forced to make two world-class saves from Felix Afena-Gyan’s efforts in the 52nd and 53rd minutes. Winger Jesurun Rak-Sakyi agonisingly struck the crossbar with a curling left-footed shot from outside the box seconds later.
A minute later, Ghana suffered another devastating blow after failing to convert their best chances. Mexico’s substitute Guillermo Martínez made a sublime finish to make it 2-0 from Luis Romo’s counter attack in the 54th minute.
Even Ghana’s sweeping changes from the bench could not rescue the Black Stars. Razak Simpson, Prince Amoako, and Jerry Afriyie were introduced in place of Rak-Sakyi, Daniel Agyei, and Afena-Gyan. Solomon Agbasi also replaced Asare in the 76th minute, while Salim Adams and Aziz Issah handled the midfield from the bench.
Ultimately, these substitutes were enough to turn things around for the Black Stars. Jerry Afriyie came close to scoring with a 94th header from Ebenezer Adade’s cross. Salim Adams’ long-range drive also forced a diving save from Acevedo at stoppage time.
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The North Americans held on to their defence and were rewarded with a win and a clean sheet. Ghana will go home with crucial defensive and clinical lessons as Carlos Queiroz’s men continue their preparations for the World Cup.
