Mohammed Zaidan scored in the 88th minute to hand Karela United a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Hearts of Oak, ending the Phobians’ unbeaten start to the 2026/27 Ghana Premier League (GPL) season.
The decisive moment came at the Aliu Mahama Sports Stadium after an entertaining Matchday 4 encounter, with Zaidan producing a composed finish late in the game to spark wild celebrations among the home supporters.
The Phobians had established a winning pattern in the first two weeks of the competition until they were stretched to a goalless stalemate at the University of Ghana Sports Stadium by Bechem United on Matchday 3.
For their followers, it was an unexpected result against a Bechem side that struggled to survive last season.
On the back of that, the Phobians vowed to return to winning ways, starting with Karela United at their own backyard.
However, it was Karela United that started with greater purpose and created the better chances in the opening half, but their dominance was not reflected on the scoreboard as they struggled to find the finishing touch.
Hearts also created opportunities but failed to pose the same level of threat as their hosts, with both sides heading into the break level after an action-packed first half.
Karela maintained their attacking pressure after the restart and continued to search for the breakthrough. Their persistence eventually paid off in the closing stages.
Zaidan produced a moment of individual brilliance, dribbling his way through the Hearts defence before firing a low effort into the net to secure all three points for Karela United with just two minutes of normal time remaining.
The victory gives Karela a valuable boost while bringing Hearts’ unbeaten run to an end after four matches.
