Mustapha Kechaf will referee Ghana’s Africa Cup of Nations 2027 qualifier against Gambia after Jalal Jayed was withdrawn from the fixture because of his international commitments.
The Group C match will take place in Accra on Tuesday, 29 September, at 16:00 GMT (18:00 in France). Jayed had originally been selected as the referee, but the Moroccan has been replaced by compatriot Kechaf, as reported by insider Micky Jnr.
Jayed’s absence is linked to his appointment at the Gulf Cup 2026. He took charge of the Kuwait-Iraq match on Saturday in Jeddah, with Iraq winning 3-2 in the competition’s second round.
The timing of that fixture meant Jayed could not travel to Accra three days later. The Confederation of African Football (CAF) therefore made a late alteration to the officiating team and appointed Kechaf as the central referee.
Moroccan official Lahsen Azgaou will serve as assistant referee number one. Tunisia’s Yassine Saadaoui has been appointed assistant referee number two, while his compatriot Amir Loucif will be the fourth official.
Kechaf does not have the same level of experience as Jayed and has never previously refereed an Africa Cup of Nations qualifying match. However, he has officiated in several CAF inter-club competition fixtures and was also involved at CHAN 2024.
He has refereed at an Africa Cup of Nations finals tournament, taking charge of Zimbabwe’s 3-2 victory over South Africa at the 2025 edition. That match was played in Marrakech on 29 December.
Jayed, meanwhile, was one of the referees at the 2026 World Cup, where he officiated three matches. His selection for the Gulf Cup 2026 prevented him from handling the Ghana-Gambia fixture.
Ghana will be seeking a response after beginning their qualifying campaign with a 2-0 defeat by Cote d’Ivoire in Bouake. Gambia opened their campaign with a narrow 2-1 victory over Somalia.
The match in Accra is the second round of fixtures in the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying competition.