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          Profiling Ghana's greatest footballers of all time

          Choosing the greatest players in Ghana's illustrious football history is a struggle.

          Different eras and different player positions are all considerations, as are trophies, which on a national scale has stopped coming since 1982. But on the balance of history, different eras, individual careers, pure ability as footballers, impact on the national team and trophies won, KweséSports' Michael Oti Adjei has picked 10 players we think are a good representation of the greatest Ghanaian players - in no particular order.

          Tony Yeboah

          Two-time joint Bundesliga goal king, scorer of some of the best goals in the English Premier League, and a trail blazer for African strikers in the big leagues of Europe. People often down play his contribution with Ghana, but he scored 29 goals in 59 games for the Black Stars, a rate of one every two games. Yeboah may not have been everyone's flavour, but his eye for goal, execution, technique and the fact that he did it on a scale no other Ghanaian striker had done it against some of the best defences in the world earns him a place in our list. ALSO READ: Top 10 African stars of 2016

          Abedi Pele

          There are those who swear he is, in fact, the greatest Ghanaian player ever, and there is compelling evidence to support that. He is a former Ghana Colts Player of the Year, a Nations Cup winner, the first Ghanaian to win the European Champions League and a three-time African Player of the year. But Pele's greatness cannot be measured in his achievements alone. He could dribble, pass, score important goals and inspired teams in a manner that was infectious. He was technically gifted and the fact he was the first big star from Ghana to break through in European football is ample evidence of his ability to adapt and cope to different football cultures. He remains the measuring rod for Ghanaian football. No wonder that up till now we are waiting for the successor to the man they called the 'Maestro'...

          Michael Essien

          Michael EssienEssien ticks all the right boxes when compiling a list of the greatest players; technically gifted, a good passer of the ball, a full trophy cabinet, individual accolades and a pionerring star. When Essien first burst on the scene with Liberty Professionals and the Black Starlets, there was genuine hope he would become a good player. Few predicted he would be great. He shone brightly at Lyon both in domestic and European competitions, convincing Chelsea to make him the most expensive African signing in 2005. And with the Blues he added to his collection of League titles under Jose Mourinho. But he did more than that. He earned a reputation as one of the best midfielders in the world, going on to play for Real Madrid and AC Milan in one of the most accomplished careers by a Ghanaian player. At international level he had to deal with accusations of not caring enough about Ghana, but his displays for the Black Stars at the 2006 World Cup and the 2008 Nations Cup showed a lot of that was hot air.

          Mohammed Polo

          He was nicknamed the Dribbling Magician and The Professor as a tribute to the amazing things he did with the football. There are those who grew up in the late 70s and 80s who swore he did things with the ball that even Messi could not do. Abedi Pele has suggested he was as good Diego Maradona and Polo himself says he could measure a pass that gave strikers no option but to score. He was a Nations Cup winner in 1978 and went on to become a core member of the Hearts of Oak side that dominated Ghanaian football and thrilled in Africa in the late 70s. There can be no compilation of the ten best Ghanaian players without Polo.

          Sammy Kuffuor

          Samuel KuffourIf there is a debate about who the greatest Ghanaian footballer was, there can be none about who the most decorated is. That is Samuel Osei Kuffour. He won six Bundesliga titles, five domestic cups, a Champions League trophy plus a World Club Cup. At international level he was a world champion at Under-17 level with the Black Starlets and part of the Ghana team that took Africa's first ever medal in football at the Olympics in 1992. While some have suggested he was not as technically gifted as the likes of Kuuku Dadzie or as good as Addo Odametey, it is difficult to ignore how much he won, the level he played at and that fact that in all those moments he never a bit part player. He showed a consistency to thrive and cope at the highest level that was remarkable.

          Golden Boy Razak

          Razak had a left foot to die for and dribbling skills that set the Kumasi Sports Stadium and many stadiums around the continent alight for many years. A Nations Cup winner with Ghana in 1978, he was also was named African Player of the Year that same year. The ginger-haired playmaker thrilled fans in Kumasi, New York where he played for Cosmos, and in Egypt where he signed for Arab Contractors. His crowning moment was, however, in 1978 when he scored two crucial goals as Ghana won a third Afcon title, including in the semifinal winner against Tunisia which gave him the nickname 'Golden Boy'. CAF named him among the 30 greatest African players of the last 30 years.

          Ibrahim Sunday

          Developing midfielders is Ghana's forte. For generations, there have been many excellent ones but few as good as Ibrahim Sunday. Experts call him a typical midfielder; constructive, an excellent passer of the ball and purposeful. And he had the trophies and honour to show for them. He was African Player of the Year in 1971 after captaining Kotoko to their first ever African club title in 1971, the first by a Ghanaian club.

          Stephen Appiah

          'The Tornado' was the rare breed of leadership by example that drove Ghana to a first ever World Cup. He won little in terms of trophies for both club and country, but it is a sign of how much impact he had especially on the Black Stars that he is held in so much esteem. And a lot of that was for the role he played in getting Ghana to the 2006 World Cup. His teammates speak of a player who was selfless to the core and rallied everyone around in an excellent way. On the field he scored and set up crucial goals against Uganda, South Africa and Burkina Faso to turn a tight qualifying campaign in Ghana's favour. And when Ghana reached a first ever World Cup, his midfield displays left many watching in awe. He could pass, was a supreme athlete and technically gifted. That is why apart from a spell at Juventus, many decry the fact that his club career didn't glitter in the same way.

          Robert Mensah

          There has been no goalkeeper like Robert Mensah in the history of Ghana. The former Ebusua Dwarfs goalie was so good that Kotoko poached him with a Volkswagen car and 1000 CEDIS, which was unheard of in 1960s. And he paid that back with a string of phenomenal saves for the Porcupine Warriors as they defied all the odds to win a first African Cup title in 1971. He pulled off phenomenal saves for Kotoko and represented Ghana at the 1968 Olympics and the Nations Cup that same year. On the field, he had a reputation as a showman, often mocking opponents with gamesmanship. Off the field he was considered a wild character. He was murdered in a drinking spot confrontation in 1971. The Robert Mensah Stadium in Cape Coast where Ebusua Dwarfs play their league games is named after him.

          Osei Kofi

          He was the dribbling master with the quick feet; mesmerising on the ball and with an incredible knack for goals. He was so good Stoke City in their pomp wanted to sign him in 1968 after he impressed in two friendly games against them. The Kotoko hierarchy rejected the bid, or he rejected them as the story goes. Whichever way, it added to his legend in Ghana. He was a Nations Cup winner in 1968, scoring three goals en route to that triumph.