Meet the coach who converted Abedi Pele from defensive midfielder to No.10

Abedi started his career at Ghanaian side Real Tamale United (RTU), where his skills were first honed as a professional footballer.

At RTU, he played under Coach Adusei, who decided that the footballer would be more useful further up the pitch.

The legendary coach said when Abedi arrived at the club, everyone knew him as a defensive midfielder but he had to change his position after realising his offensive attributes.

“People were surprised when I made that move because everyone knew Abedi Pele to be a number 6 (defensive midfielder),” Coach Adusei told Silver FM, as quoted by Ghanaweb.

“But I knew that if we pushed Abedi forward (into a 10 role) and left Abu Imoro and Shaibu Grant in the six and eight positions respectively, they would form the right triangle for the game I wanted to play. So, that is how Abedi ended up as an attacking midfielder.”

Abedi was one of Africa’s most celebrated footballers in the 1990s, having made his name with Olympique Marseille.

The 59-year-old won numerous titles with the French giants, including Ligue 1 and the UEFA Champions League.

He was also voted CAF Footballer of the Year three times, with a triumph in the 1982 AFCON completing his medal cabinet at both club and international level.