Black Stars coach Otto Addo believes Nigeria’s greater experience proved decisive in Ghana’s 2-1 defeat at the GTech Community Stadium West in London on Wednesday night.
Speaking at his post-match press conference, Addo reflected on the semifinal loss in the Unity Cup, attributing part of the result to the contrast in team maturity between the two West African rivals.
“Like I said, it’s not always easy, especially when we have players that haven’t often played together,” he stated. “I think Nigeria had a more mature team that could adapt faster. We had problems getting into the duels to press well, but also to defend well.”
Ghana fielded a largely experimental side, handing debuts to Aaron Essel, Christopher Bonsu Baah, Caleb Yirenkyi, and Mohammed Fuseini, with several key names missing due to injury or unavailability. The likes of Thomas Partey, Mohammed Kudus, Inaki Williams, Alexander Djiku, and Antoine Semenyo were all absent.
Despite the result, Addo found encouragement in Ghana’s second-half display, which saw debutant Brandon Thomas-Asante score and the team push hard for an equaliser.
Nigeria will face Jamaica in the final on Saturday after the Caribbean side edged Trinidad and Tobago 3-2 in the other semifinal. Ghana take on the Soca Warriors in the third-place playoff.
