Missing out on 1999 and 2001 APOTY: Kuffour feels ‘cheated’
The ex-defender reached the Champions League final in 1999 but lost and won the trophy in 2001.
1999 Caf Awards: Better than Kanu!
“I think I should have won the two of them,” Kuffour told Goal on Saturday, “because in 1999, Kanu was injured for [almost] the whole year. He scored a hat-trick [against Chelsea] but how many games did he play? Last time, he and I were debating, we were talking about it.
“Kanu and I go a long way, we have been very good friends. We were discussing the issue and it turned into laughter. For me, I think I deserved to win in 1999. Even the guy who came third, [Ibrahima] Bakayoko [of Mali] told me I deserved to win it.
2001 Caf Awards: Glory year, BBC award year.
“In 2001, even for the BBC African Player of the Year, El-Hadji Diouf was not even part of it. It was me, Mohammed Kallon of Sierra Leone and Samuel Eto’o. So why should El-Hadji Diouf win [the Caf award]?
“If you become the African Player of the Year, they [Caf] will call you to tell you. You have to choose the venue and date. And I did that: I chose the venue and date. Even today, a lot of people ask about that.
How? They seemed shocked.
“You play Africa Cup of Nations in January and you didn’t win the trophy. I won the league, FA Cup, the Champions League, the Inter-continental Cup – I was the [Man of the Match], I was the best defender in the German league, so how? I don’t know. But well I don’t even think about it. We talk about it and we laugh – me and my children.”
“I think 2001 was the greatest moment of my career because it was a year of gold for me because 1991 we [Ghana U17] won the World Cup and in 2001, I won the Champions League,” the 43-year-old said.
“And then I won the [BBC] African Player of the Year, the Ghana Player of the Year, the Ghana Sportsman of the Year, I won the Intercontinental Cup in Japan [where I won the Man of the Match] and got a car. So for me, 2001 was an incredible year for me.”
No low moment in my career.
“I don’t have a low moment of my career because in my career, I was consistent. The consistency was very key for me because if you want to be the best, you cannot play for just two years and become the best,” the centre-back opined.
“For me to be recognised among the 30 Best African Players of All-Time and being the only defender, I think it was a great achievement for me.”
Enjoy Bayern Munich’s chat with Sammy Kuffour on his 8-year career with the German giants below:
