Two Ghanaian icons, Abedi Ayew Pele and Tony Yeboah
Nigerian football legend Augustine “Jay-Jay” Okocha has included two Ghanaian icons, Abedi Ayew “Pele” and Tony Yeboah, in his list of the five greatest African players of all time.
Responding to a question on his picks, Okocha placed former Black Stars captain Abedi Pele second on the list, followed closely by prolific striker Tony Yeboah in third.
At the very top, he chose George Weah, the Liberian forward who remains the only African to have won the Ballon d’Or.
Okocha, who turned 52 this month, positioned himself fourth and rounded off the list with Ivorian legend Didier Drogba in fifth.
A celebrated figure in African football, Okocha won the 1994 Africa Cup of Nations and the 1996 Olympic Games with Nigeria, while also enjoying an illustrious club career with Frankfurt, Fenerbahçe and Paris Saint-Germain, where he famously mentored Ronaldinho.
Abedi Pele and Yeboah both starred in Ghana’s celebrated “Golden Generation” of the early 1990s.
Pele led Olympique Marseille to UEFA Champions League glory in 1993 and won multiple African Footballer of the Year awards.
Yeboah, meanwhile, established himself as one of Europe’s most feared strikers, winning the Bundesliga top scorer award in 1993 and 1994 with Eintracht Frankfurt before becoming a fan favourite at Leeds United, where he was named Player of the Year in 1996.
Weah, who heads Okocha’s list, achieved stardom with AS Monaco, Paris Saint-Germain and AC Milan before later playing for Chelsea and Manchester City.
