Illiasu Shilla Alhassan (born 26 October 1982) is a Ghanaian former professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who played as a defender.

Career

Illiasu was born in

Tema Tema is a city on the Bight of Benin and Atlantic coast of Ghana. It is located east of the capital city; Accra, in the region of Greater Accra, and is the capital of the Tema Metropolitan District. As of 2013, Tema is the eleventh most popul ...

, Ghana, and began his career in

Kumasi Kumasi (historically spelled Comassie or Coomassie, usually spelled Kumase in Twi) is a city in the Ashanti Region, and is among the largest metropolitan areas in Ghana. Kumasi is located in a rain forest region near Lake Bosomtwe, and is the ...

with Real Republicans—a youth club—and then

King Faisal Babes King Faisal Football Club is a professional association football club based in Kumasi, Ashanti Region, Ashanti, Ghana. The club competes in the Ghana Premier League, Glo Premier League. They were represented at the 2006 FIFA World Cup by left-ba ...

, where he played in two successive campaigns in the African Confederations Cup in 2004 and 2005. The tough tackling defender then moved to

Asante Kotoko Asante Kotoko Sporting Club, simply known as Asante Kotoko, is a professional football club founded on 31 August 1935 and based in Kumasi in the Ashanti Region of Ghana. Nicknamed the ''Porcupine Warriors'', they compete in the Ghana Premier Lea ...

and won a place in Ghana's squad for the

2006 World Cup The 2006 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Germany 2006, was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to host the ...

, despite having never played for the

national team A national sports team (commonly known as a national team or a national side) is a team that represents a nation, rather than a particular club or region, in an international sport. The term is most commonly associated with team sports, for exam ...

, and was only one of just four domestic-based players. Shilla replaced

Issah Ahmed Issah Gabriel Ahmed or Issah Gabarel Ahmad (born 24 May 1982) is a Ghanaian former professional footballer who played as a defender. Club career Ahmed signed a new contract with Randers FC in the end of July 2008. International career Ahmed wa ...

at Kotoko in January 2006, and his performances in recent months were enough to convince coach Ratomir Dujkovic to take him to Germany. His impressive performances at the World Cup grabbed the attentions of a number of big European clubs. After trials at

Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...

and

Blackburn Rovers Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club, based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second tier of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. T ...

he eventually joined Russian club FC Saturn. Shilla's contract with Saturn was cancelled in 2008. He then returned to Ghana and had to spend three years recovering from an ankle injury. He restarted his football career in 2011, signing with top-flight club

Real Tamale United Real Tamale United, often abbreviated as RTU, is a football club based in Tamale, Northern Region of Ghana. The team previously competed in the Ghana Division One League, after being relegated to the second tier in the 2013–14 Ghana Football ...

Personal life

His older brother Shilla Alhassan, played with him at

and played formerly for Guan United FC.GLO PREMIER LEAGUE 2010-2011 – HALF-SEASON REPORT (PART TWO)
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References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Shilla, Illiasu 1982 births 2006 FIFA World Cup players 2008 Africa Cup of Nations players Asante Kotoko S.C. players FC Saturn Ramenskoye players Ghana international footballers Ghanaian expatriate footballers Ghanaian footballers King Faisal Babes FC players Living people People from Tema Russian Premier League players Expatriate footballers in Russia Expatriate footballers in Armenia Armenian Premier League players Association football defenders Real Tamale United players Ghana Premier League players