George Alhassan, nicknamed Jair, referring to Jairzinho, is a retired

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 ...

ian

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 lea ...

. He is best known for his exploits in the 1982 Africa Cup of Nations which saw him lift the trophy for the second time in his career. During his career he played in Ghana, Gabon and Korea. He was given the nickname Jair, due to a similar style of play to the Brazilian player Jairzinho.

Club career

Alhassan played for

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 ...

from 1974 to 1982 and later returned to play in 1985 to 1990. In the process he won the Ghana Premier League in his debut season in 1974. From 1982 to 1984, he played for FC 105 Libreville in Gabon, where he won two trophies, the Gabon Championnat National D1 in 1983 and the Coupe du Gabon Interclubs in 1984.

International career

Alhassan made several appearances for the

Ghana national football team The Ghana national football team represents Ghana in men's international Association football, football. The team is named the Black Stars after the Black Star of Africa in the flag of Ghana. It is governed by the Ghana Football Association, t ...

, including qualifying matches for several

FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often called the World Cup, is an international association football competition among the senior List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams of the members of the FIFA, Fédération Internatio ...

s. In 1978, he played for the Ghana squad who won the African Cup of Nations in home soil. Four years later he helped Ghana regain the title successfully, being the top scorer of the tournament with four goals, including two against

Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...

in the semifinal and one in the final against hosts

Libya Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...

Personal life

George is the father of Kalif Alhassan, a professional football player in the United States with

Tampa Bay Rowdies The Tampa Bay Rowdies are an American professional soccer team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The club was founded in 2008 and first took the pitch in 2010. Since 2017, the Rowdies have been members of the USL Championship in the second tie ...

After retirement

In October 2020, he was appointed as the Welfare Officer of his former club Accra Great Olympics.

Honours

Club

Great Olympics * Ghana Premier League: 1974 FC 105 Libreville * Gabon Championnat National D1: 1983 * Coupe du Gabon Interclubs: 1984

International

Ghana *

African Cup of Nations The Africa Cup of Nations, commonly abbreviated as AFCON and officially known as the TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons, is the main biennial international men's association football competition in Africa. It is s ...

1978 Events January * January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213. * January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of Republican People's Party, CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd ...

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street Bridge in Washington, D.C. ...

Individual

Golden boot:

Africa Cup of Nations The Africa Cup of Nations, commonly abbreviated as AFCON and officially known as the TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons, is the main biennial international men's association football competition in Africa. It is s ...

Team of the Tournament:

* Ghana Premier League Top scorer: 1977, 1985 *

References

External links

*
I couldn't play in Korea due to pork meat- Ex-Ghana top scorer - George Alhassan Interview

1955 births Living people Africa Cup of Nations–winning players Ghanaian men's footballers Ghanaian expatriate men's footballers Ghana men's international footballers 1978 African Cup of Nations players 1982 African Cup of Nations players 1984 African Cup of Nations players Ulsan HD FC players K. Berchem Sport players K League 1 players FC 105 Libreville players Expatriate men's footballers in Gabon Expatriate men's footballers in South Korea Ghanaian expatriate sportspeople in Gabon Accra Great Olympics F.C. players Ghanaian expatriate sportspeople in South Korea Men's association football forwards Accra Great Olympics F.C. non-playing staff Ghana Premier League players Ghana Premier League top scorers 20th-century Ghanaian sportsmen {{Ghana-footy-bio-stub