15 January 2024 , 09:39
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A furious Ghana fan who reportedly launched a verbal attack on manager Chris Hughton was taken away by police following their shock Africa Cup of Nations defeat.
Former Premier League manager Hughton oversaw the Black Stars' humiliating 2-1 loss to Cape Verde on Sunday, marking the biggest shock of the tournament so far. Hours after the match, it was claimed by local media - via The Sun - that one of the Ghana's supporters in the Ivory Coast went to the team's hotel and hurled abuse at 65-year-old Hughton.
There are conflicting reports as to whether or not the fan in question, who remains unidentified, was arrested by Ivorian authorities or merely removed from the vicinity. Hughton was appointed manager of the Ghanaian national team in February 2023, having previously been their technical director.
Sunday marked his worst day in charge, as Cape Verde star Garry Rodrigues capitalised on a defensive mix-up to dramatically win the game in the 92nd minute. The Island nation went ahead in the first half through midfielder Jamiro Monteiro, while Ghana had a goal ruled out for offside before the break.
Centre-back Alexander Djiku then put the Black Stars back on level terms with a header but that didn't deter Cape Verde, who continued to test Ghana goalkeeper Richard Ofori and eventually went top of Group B following Egypt's 2-2 draw with Mozambique.
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Hughton gave a frank assessment of his side's performance. "If you're asking me what I say to the Ghanaian's is what I'll say to anybody," the ex-Newcastle, Birmingham, Norwich and Nottingham Forest boss said post-match.
"We are incredibly, hugely disappointed with the result. We came into the game with a game plan. We changed the way of playing, the system a bit, so that we could start on the front foot. We thought the team that were put out was certainly a more offensive team. This was our intention.
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Ghana got their AFCON campaign off to a nightmare start (FRANCK FIFE/AFP via Getty Images)"I think it rocked us the goal that we conceded but I thought we got back into the game. At that stage it looked like we could go on and win it. We are hugely, hugely disappointed with our result. And I know and this group of players also know how the Ghanaian people see this game, see this tournament and our expectations going into this one. It's a defeat we're hugely disappointed with."
Ghana next face Egypt on Thursday, with both sides desperate to take all three points. Hughton will hope to have more of his key players available, having started Athletic Bilbao striker Inaki Williams on the bench and West Ham ace Mohammed Kudus still injured.