{"id":44470,"date":"2025-09-09T08:28:01","date_gmt":"2025-09-09T08:28:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/?p=44470"},"modified":"2025-09-09T08:28:01","modified_gmt":"2025-09-09T08:28:01","slug":"wcq26-djikus-header-aids-blackstars-over-mali-in-accra","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/wcq26-djikus-header-aids-blackstars-over-mali-in-accra\/","title":{"rendered":"WCQ26 : Djiku&#8217;s header aids BlackStars over Mali in Accra"},"content":{"rendered":"<div><strong>The Black Stars bolstered their chances of securing qualification to the 2026 FIFA World Cup with a slender home win over Mali at the Accra Sports Stadium.<\/strong><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js\"><\/script><br \/>\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\" style=\"display: block; text-align: center;\" data-ad-layout=\"in-article\" data-ad-format=\"fluid\" data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-7515973527815049\" data-ad-slot=\"5197133662\"><\/ins><br \/>\n<script>\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\n<\/script><\/p>\n<div>Djiku\u2019s second-half header proved the decisive goal between the two powerhouses of African football at a packed forty-five thousand stadium capacity in Accra.<\/div>\n<div>The first half ended in a drab draw, with little to choose between the two teams, who had the sole ambition of winning the game.<\/div>\n<div>READ MORE: <a title=\"\u201cWe feel good\u201d \u2013 Semenyo optimistic ahead of World Cup qualifers\" href=\"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/we-feel-good-semenyo-optimistic-ahead-of-world-cup-qualifers\/\">\u201cWe feel good\u201d \u2013 Semenyo optimistic ahead of World Cup qualifiers<\/a><\/div>\n<div>Ghana\u2019s real first shot at goal came at the half-hour mark as Jordan Ayew\u2019s attempted shot at goal, which skewed off the post, much to the relief of the Malian goalkeeper, Djigui Diarra.<\/div>\n<div>The away team was comfortable containing the home side, stretching play and tiring them out at every opportune moment.<\/div>\n<div>The second half tweak in mindset saw the team play with lots of attacking intensity and progress the ball steadily with purpose.<\/div>\n<div>https:\/\/twitter.com\/JasonBannermann\/status\/1965330944124199132<\/div>\n<div>Yirenkyi\u2019s marauding cross or shot nearly found the back of the net but was smartly tipped over by Djigui Diarra.<\/div>\n<div>READ MORE:\u00a0<a title=\"Derrick Kohn\u2019s Ghana debut awaits FIFA clearance ahead of Mali clash\" href=\"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/derrick-kohns-ghana-debut-awaits-fifa-clearance-ahead-of-mali-clash\/\">Derrick Kohn\u2019s Ghana debut awaits FIFA clearance ahead of Mali clash<\/a><\/div>\n<div>The resulting corner by Jordan was intelligently tapped in by Alex Djiku in the 48th minute.<\/div>\n<div>As the game stretched, the visiting coach, Tom Saintfiet, introduced fresh legs in Dorgeles Nene, who became a constant threat to the defence of the BlackStars.<\/div>\n<div>Otto Addo made changes as well, Kamaldeen for Semenyo in the 70th minute, but his body language and facial disposition were glaring for all to see his anguish at being taken out of the game.<\/div>\n<div>There were more changes to manage the game.<\/div>\n<div>READ MORE: <a title=\"FIFA WCQ26 : Five things we learned from BlackStars vs Chad\" href=\"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/fifa-wcq26-five-things-we-learned-from-blackstars-vs-chad\/\">FIFA WCQ26: Five things we learned from BlackStars vs Chad<\/a><\/div>\n<div>Joseph Painstil and Inaki for Kudus and Jordan, an attacking change in the 80th minute.<\/div>\n<div>The home team held on to crucially pick a home win, aiding them to six unbeaten games in the ongoing 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.<\/div>\n<div>READ MORE :\u00a0<a title=\"FIFA WCQ26 : Ghana vs Mali\" href=\"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/fifa-wcq26-ghana-vs-mali\/\">\u201cI\u2019m not afraid of getting sacked\u201d \u2013 Otto Addo on BlackStars job<\/a><\/div>\n<div>The Black Stars top the pack with 19 points, three points off Madagascar, seven points off Mali, with the October qualifiers looming.<\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js\"><\/script><br \/>\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\" style=\"display: block; text-align: center;\" data-ad-layout=\"in-article\" data-ad-format=\"fluid\" data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-7515973527815049\" data-ad-slot=\"5197133662\"><\/ins><br \/>\n<script>\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\n<\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Black Stars bolstered their chances of securing qualification to the 2026 FIFA World Cup with a slender home win over Mali at the Accra Sports Stadium. Djiku\u2019s second-half header proved the decisive goal between the two powerhouses of African football at a packed forty-five thousand stadium capacity in Accra. The first half ended in<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":44472,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[17014,8417],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-44470","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-2026-fifa-world-cup","8":"category-featured"},"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Black-Stars-2-pics.jpeg?fit=2048%2C1366&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p8jzHl-bzg","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":44480,"url":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/ghana-was-afraid-of-us-mali-coach-tom-saintfiet\/","url_meta":{"origin":44470,"position":0},"title":"&#8220;Ghana was afraid of us&#8221; &#8211; Mali coach Tom Saintfiet","author":"Raphael Bannerman-Quartey","date":"September 10, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Mali head coach, Tom Saintfiet, has revealed that he was surprised by the defensive tactics Ghana deployed when the pair clashed at the Accra Sports Stadium. The two countries went head-to-head in a bid to secure a slot at next year\u2019s 2026 FIFA World Cup in North America. Ghana\u2019s Otto\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;2026 FIFA World Cup&quot;","block_context":{"text":"2026 FIFA World Cup","link":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/category\/2026-fifa-world-cup\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tom-Saintfiet.jpeg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tom-Saintfiet.jpeg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tom-Saintfiet.jpeg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tom-Saintfiet.jpeg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tom-Saintfiet.jpeg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":44475,"url":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/match-highlights-ghana-1-0-mali\/","url_meta":{"origin":44470,"position":1},"title":"Match Highlights : Ghana 1-0 Mali","author":"Raphael Bannerman-Quartey","date":"September 9, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Alex Djiku\u2019s solitary goal proved to be the match-winner between the Black Stars of Ghana and Mali in the ongoing 2026 FIFA World Cup at the Accra Sports Stadium. \u00a0 Both teams came into the game with the sole ambition of picking all three points, but it was the home\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;2026 FIFA World Cup&quot;","block_context":{"text":"2026 FIFA World Cup","link":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/category\/2026-fifa-world-cup\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Black-Stars-1-pics.jpeg?fit=1142%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Black-Stars-1-pics.jpeg?fit=1142%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Black-Stars-1-pics.jpeg?fit=1142%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Black-Stars-1-pics.jpeg?fit=1142%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Black-Stars-1-pics.jpeg?fit=1142%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":44474,"url":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/2026-world-cup-qualifiers-five-things-we-learned-from-ghana-vs-mali\/","url_meta":{"origin":44470,"position":2},"title":"2026 World Cup Qualifiers: Five things we learned from Ghana vs Mali","author":"Raphael Bannerman-Quartey","date":"September 9, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"When it mattered the most, the Black Stars of Ghana took a giant leap in securing qualifications for the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North America following their home win over Mali at the Accra Sports Stadium. \u00a0 Djiku\u2019s match-winner proved the difference between the two countries in a keenly\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;2026 FIFA World Cup&quot;","block_context":{"text":"2026 FIFA World Cup","link":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/category\/2026-fifa-world-cup\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/GHANA.jpeg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/GHANA.jpeg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/GHANA.jpeg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/GHANA.jpeg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/GHANA.jpeg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":44463,"url":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/fifa-wcq26-ghana-vs-mali\/","url_meta":{"origin":44470,"position":3},"title":"FIFA WCQ26 : Ghana vs Mali","author":"Raphael Bannerman-Quartey","date":"September 8, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Ghana\u2019s Black Stars will play Mali in a crunch game at the Accra Sports Stadium. \u00a0 Both teams will be aiming to get all three points to bolster their chances of securing qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifier. READ MORE: \u201cI\u2019m not afraid of getting sacked\u201d \u2013 Otto\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;2026 FIFA World Cup&quot;","block_context":{"text":"2026 FIFA World Cup","link":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/category\/2026-fifa-world-cup\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Black-Stars-vs-Nigeria-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C1017&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Black-Stars-vs-Nigeria-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C1017&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Black-Stars-vs-Nigeria-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C1017&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Black-Stars-vs-Nigeria-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C1017&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Black-Stars-vs-Nigeria-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C1017&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":41497,"url":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/2026-wcq-black-stars-to-begin-camping-for-mali-car-games-on-may-30\/","url_meta":{"origin":44470,"position":4},"title":"2026 WCQ: Black Stars to begin camping for Mali, CAR games on May 30.","author":"Raphael Bannerman-Quartey","date":"May 27, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"The Black Stars will kickstart preparations in Accra on\u00a0May,30 ahead of their doubleheader World Cup qualifiers. \u00a0 The BlackStars players will converge in the nation's capital for intense preparations as they gear towards Mali and the Central African Republic games for the upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. READ MORE:\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Featured&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Featured","link":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/category\/featured\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/SALISU-NUAMAH.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/SALISU-NUAMAH.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/SALISU-NUAMAH.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/SALISU-NUAMAH.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/SALISU-NUAMAH.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":44629,"url":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/ghana-beat-comoros-to-seal-2026-fifa-world-cup\/","url_meta":{"origin":44470,"position":5},"title":"Ghana beat Comoros to seal 2026 FIFA World Cup","author":"Raphael Bannerman-Quartey","date":"October 13, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"The Black Stars of Ghana beat Comoros in the final group game of the 2026 FIFA World Cup at the Accra Sports Stadium. \u00a0 The win secured the Black Stars qualification to the World, their fifth in six outings. Before the game, the host country had beaten Central Africa Republic\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;2026 FIFA World Cup&quot;","block_context":{"text":"2026 FIFA World Cup","link":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/category\/2026-fifa-world-cup\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Black-Stars-1-pics.jpeg?fit=1142%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Black-Stars-1-pics.jpeg?fit=1142%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Black-Stars-1-pics.jpeg?fit=1142%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Black-Stars-1-pics.jpeg?fit=1142%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Black-Stars-1-pics.jpeg?fit=1142%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44470","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=44470"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44470\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":44473,"href":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44470\/revisions\/44473"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/44472"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=44470"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=44470"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saharafootball.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=44470"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}