Black Stars head coach Otto Addo believes Nigeria’s superior experience played a key role in Ghana’s 2-1 defeat in the semi-final of the 2025 Unity Cup, held on Wednesday night at the GTech Community Stadium West in London.
Reflecting on the match during his post-game press conference, Addo explained that the difference in team chemistry and maturity made it difficult for his side to match their opponents over the full 90 minutes.
He noted that Ghana struggled to settle in the early stages and had difficulty applying pressure effectively or staying compact defensively. In contrast, Nigeria, fielding a more established squad, managed the game well and capitalised on key moments in the first half to take a two-goal lead.
With several first-team regulars unavailable due to injuries or other reasons — including Thomas Partey, Mohammed Kudus, Inaki Williams, Alexander Djiku, and Antoine Semenyo — Addo turned to a youthful and relatively inexperienced group. The starting XI featured debutants such as Aaron Essel and Christopher Bonsu Baah, while Caleb Yirenkyi and Mohammed Fuseini also earned their first senior minutes off the bench.
Despite the defeat, there were positives to take from the performance. Ghana improved after the break, with Brandon Thomas-Asante scoring on his debut to reduce the deficit and spark a late push for an equaliser.
While Nigeria advance to Saturday’s final against Jamaica, who defeated Trinidad and Tobago 3-2 in the other semi-final, Ghana will return to action in the third-place playoff against the Soca Warriors.
