Top 5 moments from Sammy Kuffour’s preeminent career

It’s been more than a decade since Sammy Kuffour hung his boots from professional football.

The renowned centre-back has served Ghanaians and the world at large with the very best since coming through the ranks of Fantomas Kumasi (1983-1990), King Faisal Babes FC (1990-1991), Torino FC (1991-1993) before making waves to the elite level.

3Sports takes you back into the archives to revisit some exceptional moments in his illustrious career.

Part of the European Cup winning team with Bayern Munich in 2001.

After an unsuccessful attempt to win his first-ever European Cup with the Bavarians after a frustrating 2-1 defeat by Manchester United in the 1999 Champions League final, Kuffour’s dream eventually came to fruition just two years later.

The powerful centre-back wasn’t to be denied this time around as he steered Bayern to their first European Cup success since 1976 and their maiden Champions League victory after the Bavarians got the better of Valencia on penalties in the 2001 Champions League final to deliver the Bundesliga giants their first European club success in 25 years.

The win saw Kuffour become the sixth African to win the European Cup and the second player from Ghana to win Europe’s inter-club prestigious competition, with the great Abedi Pele triumphing with Olympique Marseille in 1992/93, the first Champions League campaign after its switch from the European Cup.

His stint with Bayern Munich

Sammy Kuffour’s pinnacle years of his career were during his 12-year stint with Bayern which produced 12 major titles including that Champions League success in 2001.

The 48-year-old centre-back won six Bundesliga titles with the Bavarians(1999,1997,2000,2001,2003 and 2005), six Germany League Cups ( 1997,1998,1999,2000,2001, and 2004) and Four German Cup titles ( 1998,2000,2003 and 2005).

The legend also won the Intercontinental Cup with Bayern in 2001 adding another prestigious silverware to his packed trophy cabinet.

His goal in the Intercontinental Cup final

One of the most remarkable moments of the career of Sammy Kuffour was his lone goal that won Bayern Munich the Intercontinental Cup in 2001 against one of the powerhouses of the Brazilian football team, Boca Juniors.

Kuffour emerged as the most valuable player after the match with his outstanding performance in the final netting the only goal of the match.

Winning the BBC African Player of the Year award

After narrowly missing out on the African Player of the Year award on two occasions, where he was beaten within a hair’s breadth by Nwankwo Kanu in 1999 and El Hadji Diouf in 2001 the legend was awarded the BBC African Player of the Year becoming the first defender to have picked it up since advent.

The Ex Bayern Munich defender also became the first Ghanaian to win it since Pele’s in its inaugural year in 1992.

His term with Ghana’s u-17 team

Kuffour did not only make his name known at the senior national team level but also the youth level. His abilities first came to the limelight in his day’s youth, while he was playing for King Faisal Babes and Torino FC.

At the youth level, Kuffour represented Ghana in the 1991 U-17 World Cup where the Black Starlets won gold after beating Spain in the final in Italy.

The stocky centre-half also has an Olympic medal in his collection after Ghana won bronze in the 1992 Olympic games in the football category.

Although the defended never truly hit his peak when he played for the senior national team Ghanaians still regard him as one of their legends and one of the best in the nation’s history,

Undoubtedly, Kuffour’s achievements paved the way for future African footballers to break into the European scene, and his impact on the sport will be etched in the memories of African and global football history forever.

Story by Rabbi Adu Agyei

The post Top 5 moments from Sammy Kuffour’s preeminent career first appeared on 3News.

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