Karela United snatched a late 1-0 victory over Hearts of Oak at the Aliu Mahama Sports Stadium in Tamale to hand the Phobians their first defeat of the 2026/27 Ghana Premier League season.
Zaidan Mohammed broke the deadlock in the 88th minute, settling a tightly contested Matchday Four encounter and ending the Phobians’ unbeaten start to the campaign.
Hearts had the first clear opportunities of the game, with one effort ruled out for offside in the 10th minute. Six minutes later, Henry Boateng saw his effort blocked after receiving a pass from Emmanuel Asmah.
Karela gradually grew into the contest and came close to opening the scoring in the 28th minute, but Hearts goalkeeper Sharif Shuaib produced an excellent save to keep the visitors level.
Shuaib was again called into action shortly after the restart, making another important stop in the 49th minute as Karela increased the pressure.
Hearts tried to respond through Dominic Nsobila, who fired narrowly wide from distance, while Kader Mahmoud also saw an attempt blocked after Henry Boateng created an opening.
Despite further saves from Shuaib and changes from both sides, neither team could find a breakthrough until Zaidan struck two minutes from full time.
The defeat ends Hearts’ unbeaten run after they opened the season with two wins and a draw, including a 4-0 victory over Berekum Chelsea and a 2-1 comeback win at Gold Stars.
Karela, meanwhile, bounced back from their 2-1 defeat to Aduana FC in Matchday Three to claim a second home victory.
