Alhaji Mohammed Ahmed (born 11 November 1956), popularly known as Mohammed Polo and the "Dribbling Magician", is a former Ghanaian international and local club

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

player. He is considered one of the best dribblers and Ghanaian player of his generation. He spent years of his soccer career playing as a

left winger In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

for Hearts of Oak in the

Ghana Premier League The Ghana Premier League is the top professional association football league in Ghana organized by the Ghana Football Association and formed in 1958 to replace a previous league incarnation, the Gold Coast Club Competition which ran from 1933 ...

in the 1970s and 1980s, and was also a key player in the

Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...

squad that won the

1978 African Cup of Nations The 1978 African Cup of Nations was the eleventh edition of the Africa Cup of Nations, the football championship of Africa ( CAF). It was hosted by Accra and Kumasi, Ghana. The format of the competition changed from 1976: the field of eight teams ...

held in

Playing career

Club career

Early beginnings in the 70s

Polo played football with teams in Accra such as Auroras,

Accra Great Olympics Accra Great Olympics is a Ghanaian professional Football team, football club based in Accra, Greater Accra Region, Greater Accra. The club is currently competing in the Ghana Premier League. It has won the Ghana Premier League twice, in 1970, 197 ...

and for Hearts of Oak, where along with Mama Acquah, Anas Seidu, Peter Lamptey and Robert Hammond were known as the “Fearsome Five”.

Late 70s and 80s at Al Wasl

From 1979 to 1984, Mohammad Polo played for the famous Dubai club, Al Wasl, where he was popular with the fans.

Later career

In 1985 Polo returned to the league of Ghana for Hearts of Oak where he stayed for 2 seasons. He returned to Hearts of Oak in 1989 for another 3-year spell with the club. In 1992 he signed again for

ending his career in 1994, aged 38, to move into coaching.

International career

He was first called-up to play for the Black Stars at age 17. In the

where Ghana won its third AFCON title, Polo scored a goal and was listed as a forward in the CAF Team of the Tournament along 3 other Ghanaian players.
He played 54 times scoring 20 goals for Ghana national team from 1973 until 1985.

Post-playing career

He was appointed head coach of

club Accra Hearts of Oak in 1994 and then in 2013 for seven months. In 2004, Polo was appointed the technical head of the Ghanaian football club

. Mohammed Polo owns the soccer academy Golden Stars Academy, which trained at

Legon Legon , a suburb of the Ghanaian city Accra, is situated about north-east of the city center in the Ayawaso West Municipal District, a district in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana. Legon is home to the main campus of the University of Ghana. ...

, however has now been renamed Polo Soccer Academy.

Legacy

In 2020, as a speculation regarding Ghana's greatest player of all time had emerged, Polo claimed to be Ghana's best footballer ever following a statement by Osei Kofi who said the same about himself. Polo's statement was also back by

Abedi Pele Abedi Ayew ( ; born 5 November 1964), known professionally as Abedi Pele, is a Ghanaian former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder and served as captain of the Ghana national team. He is regarded as one of the grea ...

, Kwabena Yeboah and Kwabena Agyapong. On 9 September 2021, Ghanaian-born singer and political activist Kwame Asare Obeng (aka ''A Plus'') stated that Polo is the third greatest player in history, only behind

Pelé Edson Arantes do Nascimento (; 23 October 1940 – 29 December 2022), better known by his nickname Pelé (), was a Brazilian professional Association football, footballer who played as a Forward (association football), forward. Widely reg ...

and

Diego Maradona Diego Armando Maradona Franco (30 October 196025 November 2020) was an Argentine professional association football, football player and manager. Widely regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of the sport, he was one of the two ...

praising his dribbling abilities.

Honours

Polo has won the following honours

Notes and references

External links

*
Mohammed Ahmed Polo Biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Polo, Mohammed Ahmed Living people 1956 births Accra Hearts of Oak S.C. players Ghana men's international footballers Ghanaian men's footballers Ghanaian expatriate men's footballers Al Wasl F.C. players Sekondi Hasaacas F.C. players 1978 African Cup of Nations players 1984 African Cup of Nations players Africa Cup of Nations–winning players UAE Pro League players Men's association football midfielders Accra Hearts of Oak S.C. managers Ghanaian football managers Expatriate men's footballers in the United Arab Emirates Ghanaian expatriate sportspeople in the United Arab Emirates 20th-century Ghanaian sportsmen