Michael Essien is a Ghanaian football player, currently plays for Persib Bandung and with the Black Stars of Ghana. He is a household name at the Chelsea Club due to his almost ten-year stint with the club. Michael Essien is a midfielder who has often been praised as a box-to-box midfielder for his ability to energetically support offensive and defensive play as well as his tough attacking style. Essien can also play as a defender, both on the right flank and in the middle. I assume you already know these very striking facts about him. There is actually a lot more you should know.
Michael Essien Bio
Michael Kojo Essien who was born on December 3, 1982 mother “Aba Gyandoh” and father “James Essien. Micheal grew up in Awutu Breku, a small town in central Ghana where he also took an interest in the game of football. When he was 12 years old, the younger Essien moved to Accra with his mother and siblings.In less than two years, he received a football scholarship to a secondary school in Cape Coast.After graduating, he began his career at a local club in Ghana, which called “Liberty Professionals”.
He broke through playing in the 1999 FIFA U-17 World Cup in New Zealand. This led to the attention he received from European scouts and he even had a court case at Manchester United in April 2000 when he denied the Under-17s defeat to Derby County. Manchester United offered him a contract to play for them but work permit issues meant he would have had to join their Belgian feeder club Royal Antwerp before he could move to England. Since then he has played for notable clubs including; Bastia, Olympic Lyonnais, Chelsea, Real Madrid, Milan and currently Peris Bandung.
It is known that after leaving Chelsea aMichael Essien, for whom he worked for nine years, stopped a move to QPR – as he could not bear to play for Chelsea’s West London rivals. A former blues star, he also rejected West Brom and fought hard to secure a new club in Europe. He did so when he joined AC Milan a year after leaving Chelsea. He has always said he doesn’t want to play for any side other than his old club Chelsea in the Premier League.
House, cars and fortune
As with most soccer players who typically have considering most are paid weekly, this wealth is usually reflected in how much they spend on the finest cars and mansions. The luxury car make in Essiens Kitty includes: £75,000 Range Rover Vogue, an Aston Martin as well as a Milan car. Regarding his homeland, he owns a property in Surrey in the UK.
In a relationship with Nadia Buari
He once dated light-skinned Ghanaian actress “Nadia Buari” and this was not a secret relationship as it became public knowledge given the couple’s celebrity status. It was so glaring that every Dick and Harry thought it would lead to something worthwhile, but it wasn’t meant as if the football star had suddenly dumped them without a clear reason for doing so.
Before
Essien tied the knot with his publicist girlfriend Akosua Puni in a secret wedding late last year in London after reportedly breaking up with Ghanaian actress Nadia Buari. They are already blessed with two children, a boy and a girl. He has tried as much as possible to protect his new family from the social scene as he believes too much media exposure can be disruptive to his family and children.
Things to know about Michael Essien
1. He’s from a broken home
Michael Essien was about two years old when his parents separated. He and his siblings were taken in and raised by their mother. This made his father completely alienated from him. However, he is very close to his mother. He always emphasizes how much his mother supported him, especially when it comes to his football coach. He described her as the “pillar behind him”.
2. His father was also a soccer player
Michael’s father, James Essien, played football for the Gold Coast in his youth. Even Michael’s late older brother was a football player before his accidental and untimely death. So I could say that football runs in his family.
3. His father disowned him for neglect before he died.
Michael’s father, James Essien, a frail old and unhealthy pauper, has complained in recent years about being abandoned and neglected by his son. And for that reason, he sincerely insists that Michael drop the Essien surname. This is his father’s house in the photo above. Isn’t that pathetic? Listen to the poor old man:
I will do everything I can to make sure he doesn’t use my name anymore… Even if I have to take him to court I will… I’ve been ill for over a year now. It is Kyeremeh Berekum (CEO of Chelsea) who is looking after me and I see no reason for him to continue to bear my name,” James Essien told Happy FM, a private radio station from Accra. I haven’t seen him in the last 15 years and I haven’t spoken to him in the last six years because I don’t even have his number let alone contact him…”
However, Michael denied this claim, saying he takes care of the father monthly, sends him money, takes care of his medical bills, built him a house and bought him a car. Unfortunately, the man died not long after.
4. He is nicknamed “Bison”
Considering how quiet and shy Essien is when he’s not playing, it’s hard to believe he’s the same person when he’s on the field. Essien’s field strength and tough fighting style earned him the name “Bison”, the name of a large and very energetic buffalo-like land animal. However, he does comment on this unique behavioral contrast:
“I don’t know why I change like this when I play. Off the pitch I’m completely different and club staff have to follow me to move.”
5. He has dual citizenship
Michael’s 5-year football business in France earned him French citizenship. During these five years he played for Bastia (2002-2003) and Lyon (2003-2005). His performances at Olympique Lyonnais led to him being voted Player of the Year in 2005 by the French Professional Footballers Union (UNFP). Essien also helped Lyon reach the quarter-finals of the 2004/05 UEFA Champions League, where he produced dynamic performances and scored five goals in the tournament.
6. He is the first African to be voted Chelsea Player of the Year
On 15 May 2007, Chelsea fans voted Essien as Chelsea’s Player of the Year for his contributions during the 2006–07 season, becoming the first African to receive the honour. His late dramatic equalizer against Arsenal was also voted Chelsea’s goal of the 2006/07 season.
7. He runs a charity foundation
The Michael Essien Foundation (MEF) is a local Ghanaian NGO founded about a year ago by Michael Essien of the renowned Ghanaian football club International and ex-Chelsea Football Club Star. The aim is to create opportunities and hope for the disadvantaged in the Awutu Breku region. The aim of the MEF is to promote basic services and community opportunities for various groups through various projects and activities. His wife Puni happens to be his Charity Foundation Manager/PRO.