When you think of the best soccer-playing nations on the planet, Ghana is probably not a country that springs to mind first and foremost. With that being said, you might be surprised to know that there have been some pretty impressive players to come from this country in the past.
Within this short article, we will be taking a much closer look at the best Ghana soccer players to ever grace the field, and we have a feeling that you may be familiar with some of these names.
We are truly excited to share this information with you, so without further delay, let's get right into it and look at the very best soccer players to ever come from Ghana.
Asamoah Gyan
During his illustrious career, he has played for clubs such as NorthEast United FC, Al Ain (UAE Pro-League), and Shanghai SIPG.
These might not be some of the biggest clubs in the world, but for a young man from Ghana, this is a huge step up from where he came from.
Of course, Gyan represented Ghana on an international scale as well. In his career to date, he has obtained 107 appearances for the national team, and he has hit the back of the net 51 times, which is pretty impressive.
What’s even more impressive is that Gyan was ready to hang up his boots last year, that is until the president of Ghana actually called him to make a return to the international squad.
Naturally, Gyan obliged, and he will be representing Gyan once more in their next major international competition.
Abedi Pele
Abedi Pele enjoyed a 16-year professional soccer career during his time, and he retired back in 1998. You may have noticed that he shares a last name with a rather famous Brazilian soccer player, although interestingly, Abedi actually changed his last name to Pele due to the number of people making the similarities between him and the Brazilian. This was not just in his appearance either, it was for his skill and confidence on a soccer pitch.
Just like Gyan before him, Pele has played for some decent clubs in his time. He has put in a series of stellar performances for clubs such as Marseille, Lyon, and Al Ain, but his pride and passion always seemed to come out when representing his country. For Ghana, he managed to obtain 67 appearances and scored 33 goals, and all of this was achieved while primarily playing as an attacking midfielder.
As you can see, these are some pretty impressive statistics, so it's no wonder that Pele was granted the role of captain of the Ghana national team during his time. He previously served as head coach of a club in Ghana from 2003 to 2005, but since then, he has had no real involvement in the soccer World.
Michael Essien
He has played for the likes of Chelsea, Real Madrid, AC Milan, and others. Needless to say, Essien also represented Ghana during international games, with 58 appearances and 9 goals to his name.
Michael Essien, at the age of 37 years of age, has recently decided to leave the Azerbaijani Sabail FK, which he joined not long before COVID-19 started, and now he aims to focus on coaching. Considering his impressive soccer resume, having played with some of the best teams in the world, we can only expect coaching greatness from him.
Conclusion
So there you have it - the top three soccer players that have sprung from Ghana in modern history. Since two of these guys played quite recently, you may have even watched them live with your own eyes. However, if you need a little refresher, we’d encourage you to go online and look for the highlight reels for all of them!