Samuel Kuffour

Samuel Kuffour is undoubtedly one of the best African defenders in the history of football. A legendary defender for Bayern Munich, he was one of the best defenders of the 1990s and 2000s.

407

Games

Goals

Assists

Trophies

1993/2005 Bayern Munich (GER) 277 games, 10 goals

(German Championship: 175 games, 7 goals)

(German Cup: 23 games, 1 goal)

(German League Cup: 4 games)

(Champions League: 74 games, 1 goal)

(UEFA Cup: 1 game)

(Intercontinental Cup: 1 game, 1 goal)

1995/96 FC Nuremberg (GER) (Loan) 12 games, 1 goal

2005/08 AS Roma (ITA) 31 games, 1 goal

(Italian Championship: 21 games)

(Italian Cup: 3 games)

(UEFA Cup: 7 games, 1 goal)

2006/07 Livorno (ITA) (Loan) 26 matches

(Italian Championship: 18 matches)

(Italian Cup: 8 matches)

2008 Ajax Amsterdam (HOL) (Loan) 2 matches

2009 Asante Kotoko (GHA)

With the National Team :

59 caps, 3 goals

(Friendly matches: 18 caps)

(World Cup qualifiers: 16 caps, 2 goals)

(World Cup: 1 cap)

(African Cup of Nations qualifiers: 11 caps, 1 goal)

(African Cup of Nations: 13 caps)

1st cap: November 28, 1993 against Sierra Leone (3-2)

Last cap: June 12, 2006 against Italy (0-2)

Samuel Osei Kuffour

Born September 3, 1976 in Kumasi (GHA)

Ghanaian, Central defender, 1m78

A record-breaking defender

Samuel Kuffour was born on September 3, 1976 in Kumasi, Ghana. He first played in Ghanaian clubs as a child before being spotted by Torino FC, who brought him into their training center when he was 15 years old. After spending 2 years in Italy, he was finally recruited by Bayern Munich in 1993.

First joining Bayern Munich B, he then played for the first team with which he scored his first and last goal in the Champions League on November 2, 1994. With this goal, he already broke a record, that of the youngest defender to score a goal in the Champions League at 18 years and 61 days.

From substitute to starter in the Champions League final

After becoming a substitute for 2 seasons, he was finally loaned to FC Nuremberg in the German second division during the 1995/96 season. After playing a few games for this club, he returned to Bayern Munich where he would definitely establish himself as an undisputed starter.

During the 1998/99 season, he reached the Champions League final as a starter. Unfortunately for him, his team was surprised in the final moments of the match, Manchester United scoring a legendary express comeback. But he would only have to wait 2 years to participate in a Champions League final again, this time victorious, during the 2000/01 season.

He also scored the winning goal in the narrow 1-0 victory against Boca Juniors in the Intercontinental Cup that same year. Author of a statospheric season confirming his status as one of the best defenders in the world, he finished second in the African Ballon d'Or behind RC Lens player El Hadji Diouf. It was then the second time for him that he finished second in this distinction.

A Ghanaian legend who ended his career abruptly

Finally, his long love affair with Bayern Munich ended in 2005 when he decided to join the Italian championship and the club AS Roma. This experience will be a failure, it is already the end of the player's grandiose career, who signs for Ajax Amsterdam but only plays 2 matches there. Out of shape, the player is only a shadow of himself and he returns to Ghana, to Asante Kotoko, to put a definitive end to his career in 2009, then aged 33.

Having worn his country's jersey for 13 years, he was a Ghanaian international from the age of 17, then he became the team captain at only 23. In 1992, he was part of the Ghana team that won a bronze medal at the Olympic Games, he also broke the record for the youngest player to win a medal at the Olympic Games in football at only 15 years old.

In the youth categories, he was part of this golden Ghanaian generation of the early 90s which was one of the best. His greatest feat with Ghana in the seniors remains this 4th place at the African Cup of Nations in 1996. In total, he played 59 times for his country, scoring 3 goals between 1993 and 2006.