Watch highlights of Nigeria’s penalty shootout defeat to Morocco<\/a><\/p>\nHis dedication gradually restored confidence, both in his abilities and in Ghanaian refereeing. CAF began entrusting him with increasingly high-profile matches, confident he could manage tension, control the flow of the game, and make decisions under pressure.<\/p>\n
By the time AFCON 2025 arrived, Laryea had proven himself ready for the continent\u2019s biggest stage. The semifinals presented the ultimate test: two high-stakes games on the same night, with immense pressure on players, coaches, and officials alike. <\/p>\n
Senegal faced Egypt, while Morocco took on Nigeriaon Wednesday, January 14, 2026. But it was Laryea\u2019s assignment: the Morocco vs Nigeria clash that would put his skill and composure under the spotlight. <\/p>\n
Yet when the dust settled, one name was louder than all the rest: Daniel Nii Ayi Laryea.<\/p>\n
The match, played in a packed Stade Prince Moulay Abdallah in Rabat, marked him as the first Ghanaian to handle an AFCON semifinal since George Lamptey in 1972.<\/p>\n
From the opening whistle in Rabat, Laryea was up to the occasion. Over the full 120 minutes, he showed only two yellow cards: the first to Calvin Bassey in the 33rd minute and the second to Raphael Onyedika in the 77th minute. <\/p>\n
Bassey\u2019s early booking meant he would have been suspended for the final had Nigeria qualified, and that alone sparked immediate anger from Nigerian fans.<\/p>\n
Despite the intensity of the game, Laryea\u2019s restraint sent a clear message: he was in control. His composure ensured that tempers were kept in check and the match maintained its flow, even under immense pressure and the high stakes of a semifinal.<\/p>\n
When Laryea blew the full-time whistle, Nigeria had lost 4-2 on penalties. Emotions boiled over. And in the heat of elimination, blame needed a home, so it landed on the man in the middle.<\/p>\n
Social media erupted. Nigerian fans accused him of bias, dragged Ghana into it, and tried to turn rivalry into conspiracy. That reaction was predictable. A giant had fallen. And when giants fall, they always look for a referee.<\/p>\n
But away from the noise, the truth was calmer.<\/p>\n
Laryea did not hide. He did not flinch. He ran the game.<\/p>\n
Ghana\u2019s Referees Committee chairman George Seija later graded his performance 9\/10, describing his decisions as spot-on, a rare public endorsement in the ruthless world of elite officiating.<\/p>\n
What makes the moment even bigger is where Laryea came from.<\/p>\n
Just months ago, he was refereeing in the Ghana Premier League. At this AFCON, he started quietly with Burkina Faso vs Algeria in the group stage. <\/p>\n
Then CAF handed him one of the tournament\u2019s two biggest games. And on a night when two semifinals were played, it was Laryea\u2019s match that became the story of Africa.<\/p>\n
Not because he failed, but because he was trusted with pressure few ever reach. In victory, players become heroes. In defeat, referees become villains.<\/p>\n
But in Ghana, Laryea became something else that night: a symbol of how far Ghanaian officiating has come. And that, more than any argument online, is what will last.<\/p>\n
FKA\/EB<\/p>\n
Okyere Baafi speaks on alleged plot to oust Afenyo-Markin<\/p>\n
TWI NEWS<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Ghanaian refereeing had once reached the very top, producing officials respected across Africa. But in 2018, the Anas…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":26290,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[79],"class_list":{"0":"post-26289","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-ghana","8":"tag-ghana"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26289","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26289"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26289\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/26290"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26289"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26289"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26289"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}