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Wednesday, August 31, 2022, marks the 87th anniversary of Ghana’s most successful club in the Ghanaian Premier League, and the CAF Champions League.
Founded on Friday, August 31, 1935, after the Ashanti Kingdom under Nana Agyeman Prempeh used Kwasi Kumah’s Rainbow FC, which had undergone several changes to market the Kingdom because there were no wars for them to showcase their great power.
Previously known as Mighty Atoms, Asante Kotoko, who was voted Africa’s club of the 20th century by the International Football Federation of History and Statistics in 2010 is celebrating its existence as the second oldest club in Ghana after Accra Hearts of Oak.
The Porcupine Warriors have won every competition they have featured in since 1935, except the CAF Confederation Cup and CAF Super Cup.
As the club marks its 87th anniversary, GhanaWeb looks at the 15 most popular legends who played for Asante Kotoko.
1. Baba Yara
He is by far the most popular footballer to have graced the football pitch in Ghana and is one of the few whose name might never fade out in the media space.
Even people who are not football fans know the name Baba Yara, but he was named after the Kumasi Sports Stadium, which is the biggest sporting edifice in Ghana.
Osman Seidu, Baba Yara, who was born on October 12th, 1936, played for Asante Kotoko from 1954 to 1963.
2. Robert Mensah
Often labelled as the greatest ever Ghanaian goalkeeper and is best remembered for his performance for Asante Kotoko in the 1970 final against TP (TP Englebert).
Born in Cape Coast on June 12, 1939, the name Robert Mensah is very popular in Ghana, and the song that was composed for him is still relevant among children in Ghana.
3. Suday Ibrahim
He won the CAF Champions League as a player in 1970 and again in 1983 as the head coach of Asante Kotoko.
We can’t talk about the most popular Asante Kotoko legends without Sunday Ibrahim, the first Ghanaian player to win the African best player award.
4.Osei Kofi
Nicknamed the ‘wizard dribbler’, Osei Kofi’s popularity goes beyond Asante Kotoko and the boundaries of Ghana as he is considered by some to be the greatest ever Ghanaian footballer.
He won the CAF Champions League for Asante Kotoko and he was the poster boy for Asante Kotoko in the 1960s.
5. Golden Boy
The second Ghanaian player to win the African Best Player Award, Kaim Abdul Razak, made his debut for Asante Kotoko in 1975 after excelling with Kumasi-based Cornerstone.
According to sports historians, Karim scored over 150 goals in 345 appearances for the Porcupine Warriors.
Just like Sunday Ibrahim, Golden Boy also returned to Asante Kotoko as a coach to break the club’s 10-year wait for a Ghana Premier League trophy in 2003.
6. Malik Jabir
Born on December 8, 1944, in Wa, Ghana, Malik Jabir is one of the names Asante Kotoko fans bow to when mentioned in the media space.
He worked at Asante Kotoko as a player and a coach to join the list of former Porcupines who returned to the club as managers.
7. Opoku Afriyie
According to some of the defenders who played against him, Opoku Afriyie was as deadly as the sound of his nickname.
Opoku Afriyie is among 20 other Ghanaians nominated by CAF out of a total of 200 African footballers for the title of the best African player in the 20th century.
8. Opoku Nti
Samuel Opoku Nti played for Asante Kotoko from 1980 to 1985 and became the poster boy of the club after Opoku Afriyie jumped ship to join rivals Accra Hearts of Oak.
He led the club to win the 1983 CAF Champions League and that cemented his name in the history books of Asante Kotoko.
9. Sarfo Gyamfi
Nicknamed the Black President, Sarfo Gyamfi played for Asante Kotoko from 1984 to 1990 and was the captain of the club before he left to join Admira Wacker in Austria.
He was nicknamed the “Black President” because he was a strong believer of spiritualism in football.
10. Stephen Oduro
To the new generation, the popularity of Stephen Oduro in Ghana is second to none as he dully paid his due to the club.
Oduro, nicknamed “Tico Tico” because of his height, was an exceptional footballer and was loved by both Kotoko and rival fans.
He is currently the benchmark for every Kotoko midfielder in the eyes of the fans as the club is yet to find a player with his abilities.
11. Kwesi Appiah
James Kwasi Appiah played for both Asante Kotoko and the Black Stars as a defender and was instrumental for the club when they won the 1983 CAF Champions League.
Kwasi Appiah’s popularity shot up when he became the Black Stars coach, and his qualification for the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil put him on the global map.
His association with the Black Stars has made him the most talked about Asante Kotoko legend in recent times.
12. Wilbefroe Mfum
Born on August 28, 1936, the 85-year-old Asante Kotoko legend was one of the most feared strikers in Ghana in the 1960s.
Mfum played for Asante Kotoko from 1962 to 1967 and played a huge role in the development of football in Ghana.
13. Kofi Pare
Not much has been written about Kofi Pare except the fact that he doesn’t train but will play better than all his teammates on matchdays.
He was born on November 28, 1938.
14. Papa Arkoh
The defensive midfielder was the captain of Asante Kotoko’s last CAF Champions League winning team in 1983.
B Marley is well loved by Asante Kotoko fans as he is often tagged as one of the legends who do not speak ill about the club.
15. Joseph Hendricks
Since the beginning of the 21st century, there hasn’t been any Asante Kotoko defender who was more revered than Joseph Hendricks.
He was named the captain of the team in his second season because of his leadership qualities and performance on the pitch.
Author: Joel Eshun
Source: www.ghanaweb.com
