Former Black Galaxies assistant coach Bismark Kobbie Mensah has praised the Black Stars for their performance despite a 2-1 defeat to Nigeria in their Unity Cup semi-final clash on Wednesday night.
Ghana came up short at the Gtech Community Stadium, with goals from Cyriel Dessers and a deflected own goal by Razak Simpson giving Nigeria a 2-0 lead. Substitute Brandon Thomas-Asante struck late to pull one back for Ghana, but it wasn’t enough to avoid defeat.
Speaking to Accra-based Happy FM, Mensah, who once managed Accra Great Olympics, said the match offered plenty of positives — especially given the experimental nature of Ghana’s squad.
“I think the Black Stars did well yesterday,” he said. “Considering the number of new players who were given a chance, the team didn’t perform badly at all.”
Mensah highlighted Nigeria’s sharpness in the early stages as the decisive factor in the outcome.
“Ghana lost because Nigeria had a very good first half; they took their chances,” he explained.
The match featured several debutants for Ghana, including Mohammed Fuseini, Caleb Marfo Yirenkyi, and Joseph Tetteh Anang, as coach Otto Addo used the tournament as a platform to assess emerging talent.
With the loss, Ghana now prepares for the third-place playoff against Trinidad and Tobago on Saturday, May 31, while Nigeria will face Jamaica in the Unity Cup final later that day.
