Mohammed Kudus has made history as the fifth Ghanaian player ever to be nominated for the FIFA Puskas Award - awarded for the best goal scored in the season under review. But who are the other four players from Ghana who have been nominated before?
Pulse Sports Ghana presents the 5 Ghanaians who have been nominated.
Mohammed Kudus – 2024
Kudus is one of eleven candidates for the coveted accolade, which honors the top goal scored during the previous campaign.
During the second leg of the Europa League quarterfinals between West Ham United and Freiburg, the Ghanaian international scored a spectacular goal.
He dribbled past everyone in front of him to put the ball home gently after receiving it in his half and carrying it through the opposition half.
Michael Essien – 2009
Former Ghana international Michael Essien was also nominated for the award back in 2009 for his sensational strike against Barcelona in the UEFA Champions League. Essien hit a stunning left-foot volley from about 30 yards out after Frank Lampard’s strike was blocked and deflected to him.
That semi-final goal was nominated alongside nine other candidates. Cristiano Ronaldo won the award for his long-range goal against Porto in the UEFA Champions League quarter-final second leg on April 15, 2009.
Emmanuel Agyemang-Badu – 2012
Ex-Black Stars midfielder Emmanuel Agyemang-Badu earned a Puskas nomination for his goal in Ghana’s last Group D match against Guinea at the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).
He flipped a pass to himself and then whacked a stunning volley from outside the box to score one of the most memorable goals of the competition which was co-hosted by Gabon and Equatorial Guinea.
Badu was nominated alongside nine others including Lionel Messi, Radamel Falcao, and Neymar Junior, but in the end, Slovakia’s Miroslav Stoch won the award.
Kelvin-Prince Boateng – 2017
Kelvin-Prince Boateng acrobatically hit a shot on the volley to give Las Palmas a first-half lead against Villareal while playing for the Spanish La Liga side in 2017.
He couldn’t make the final three, with Olivier Giroud winning the award over South Africa’s Oscarine Masuluke and Deyna Castellanos from Venezuela, for his scorpion kick goal against Crystal Palace during the 2016–17 Premier League season.
Sandra Owusu-Ansah – 2021
Sandra Owusu-Ansah became the first Ghanaian female footballer and the fourth Ghanaian to earn a nomination for the coveted award in 2021 for her goal against Kumasi Sports while playing for Supreme Ladies in the Ghana Women’s Premier League.
Tottenham Hotspur player Erik Lamela was the winner of the award, for his goal against Arsenal during the 2020–21 Premier League season.
She now plays as a forward for Serbian Women's Super League side ZFK Spartak Subotica.