Ibrahim Sunday (born 22 July 1944) is a Ghanaian former professional football player and coach. A midfielder, he played the majority of his career for Ghanaian club Asante Kotoko, and was also a member of the Ghana national team, participating in two Africa Nations Cup tournaments. In 1971, he won the African Footballer of the Year award.[2][3] He is the first ever African footballer to appear in the Bundesliga.[4]
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 22 July 1944 | ||
| Place of birth | Koforidua, Ghana | ||
| Height | 1.68 m (5 ft 6 in)[1] | ||
| Position(s) | Winger | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1966?–1975 | Asante Kotoko | ||
| 1975–1977 | Werder Bremen | 1 | (0) |
| 1977–1980 | VSK Osterholz-Scharmbeck | ||
| International career | |||
| 1966–1977 | Ghana | 20 | (8) |
| Managerial career | |||
| c. 1983 | Asante Kotoko | ||
| c. 1991 | Africa Sports | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Club career
editBorn in Koforidua, Eastern Region, Ghana,[5] Sunday started his career playing for local club Kumasi Asante Kotoko, of which he became the captain. In 1970, he and his club won the African Cup of Champions, predecessor of the CAF Champions League, the first international title obtained by the club.[6][7]
In 1975, Sunday moved to Werder Bremen in the Bundesliga, where in two seasons he barely had any playing time, appearing in only one league match against Rot-Weiß Essen on 6 June 1976.[8][4] This, however, made him the first ever African footballer to appear in the Bundesliga.[2]
International career
editSunday was first named to the Ghana national team in 1966,[9] and his first official international tournament was the 1968 African Cup of Nations, where he scored a goal against Laurent Pokou's Ivory Coast in the semifinal as Ghana won 4–3. The Black Stars lost the final to DR Congo.
At the 1970 Nations Cup,[10] there was a rematch of the semifinal from two years before, Ghana again defeated the Ivorians winning 2–1, with Sunday scoring the opening goal.[11] However, they lost in the final again, that time to hosts Sudan.
The 1970 final was Sunday's last Nations Cup match, as Ghana failed to qualify for the 1972, 1974, and 1976 continental tournaments. Ghana then qualified for the 1972 Olympic tournament in Munich, and Sunday was part of the Olympic squad.
Coaching career
editAs a coach, Sunday managed his former club Asante Kotoko, leading them to their second African Cup of Champions victory in 1983. He also managed Abuakwa Susubiribi and Ashanti Goldfieds of Ghana,[12] FC 105 Libreville of Gabon and Ivorian club Africa Sports of Abidjan, whom he also led to the continental title in 1992.[13]
Honours
editPlayer
editAsante Kotoko[14]
- Ghana Premier League: 1963–64, 1964–65, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1972, 1975
- African Cup of Champions Clubs: 1970[7]
Ghana
- African Cup of Nations runner up: 1968, 1970
Individual
Manager
editAsante Kotoko
Africa Sports d'Abidjan
- African Cup of Champions Clubs: 1992[13]
- CAF Super Cup: 1993
Individual
- CAF Legends award: 2017[17]
References
edit- ^ "Ibrahim Sunday". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 14 October 2018.
- ^ a b Müller, Jan Christian (1 June 2007). "Der Kopfballartist zauberte nur eine Halbzeit lang". Frankfurter Rundschau (in German). Retrieved 22 April 2017.
- ^ a b "African Player of the Year 1971". RSSSF. Retrieved 30 June 2021.
- ^ a b "12. Juni 1976: Debüt von Ibrahim Sunday sorgt für Bundesliga-Novum". www.deichstube.de (in German). 12 June 2019. Retrieved 30 June 2021.
- ^ Ibrahim Sunday Biography and Statistics - Olympics at Sports-References.com Archived 12 August 2011 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Kernkompetenz Sitzfleisch". 11Freunde (in German). 3 August 2007. Archived from the original on 18 May 2017. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
- ^ a b Sienu, Sheikh Tophic (19 April 2019). "1970 CAF CL: Ibrahim Sunday reveals UNITY as the key factor for Kotoko's success". Football Made In Ghana. Archived from the original on 23 July 2021. Retrieved 30 June 2021.
- ^ "Bundesliga Ergebnisse Fussballportal.de". fussballportal.de (in German). Retrieved 22 April 2017.
- ^ (in French) http://www.africafoot.com/special_can2002/souvenirs_de_can.html Archived 19 February 2012 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Aidoo, George (21 July 1970). Daily Graphic: Issue 6158, July 21 1970. Graphic Communications Group.
- ^ "African Nations Cup 1970". RSSSF. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
- ^ Aggrey, Joe (23 December 1997). Graphic Sports: Issue 657 December 23-29 1997. Graphic Communications Group.
- ^ a b "Yeo Martial : une vie de foot". Radio France Internationale (in French). 5 June 2006. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
- ^ "Ibrahim Sunday". www.national-football-teams.com. Retrieved 30 June 2021.
- ^ "Today in history: Opoku Nti wins CAF Champions League for Kotoko". Modern Ghana. Retrieved 30 June 2021.
- ^ Drum. Drum Publications (East Africa). 1992.
- ^ "Here are all the winners of the 2017 CAF Awards". SAFA.net. 6 January 2018. Retrieved 30 June 2021.