Following Ghana’s 1-0 defeat to Colombia in the Round of 32 at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, left back Gideon Mensah says the team’s focus has already shifted to redemption in the upcoming 2027 Africa Cup of Nations Qualifiers.
Speaking after the loss at Kansas City Stadium, Gideon, stressed the squad’s determination to respond positively after Jhon Arias’ 14th-minute goal ended Ghana’s campaign.
“The plan is to take every game that comes at us as a chance for us to redeem ourselves,” he said.
“After this defeat, like I said, we have so many people that we have to make up to. First of all, ourselves, our family, our nation, our African brothers as well.”
The players are already looking ahead to the qualifiers. “We go back to our homes, get ready for the qualifiers and make sure that we win every game that we can win. Even if we are not winning, we have to put on a show to show them that we are ready for whatever is supposed to come our way.”
There was also a direct message of gratitude to Ghanaian supporters who followed the team through the tournament despite difficult kickoff times.
“We are very grateful to Ghanaians. We are very happy that they have been with us throughout the journey. We know the time difference is very, very bad. People are sacrificing their sleep, not because they don’t want to sleep, but because they love the team. We don’t take that for granted. We are hoping that the goal was to make them happy and get them to have good sleep.”
“It didn’t go that way, but we are very happy that they have been with us throughout this journey.”
Ghana exits the 2026 FIFA World Cup after reaching the Round of 32. The Black Stars will now regroup for the 2027 AFCON Qualifiers later this year.
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