Opoku Afriyie (February 2, 1955 - March 29, 2020) was a

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. He was popularly called Bayie. He played as a striker and won many caps with

Asante Kotoko Asante Kotoko Sporting Club, simply known as Asante Kotoko, is a professional sports, professional association football, football club founded on 31 August 1935 and based in Kumasi in the Ashanti Region of Ghana. Nicknamed the ''African crested ...

and 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 ...

. He worked for

as Team-Manager.

Club career

Opoku Afriyie played for Asante Kotoko for several years before signing for Hearts of Oak prior to ending his footballing career. He was the top scorer in the Ghana domestic football league in 1979 and again in 1981. In 1982, he was nominated for the French magazine France Football African Footballer of the Year. He came eighth. Opoku Afriyie is among 20 other Ghanaians nominated by CAF out of a total of 200 African footballers for the title of the best African player of the last 50 years.

International career

He was a member of the squad that won the 1978 African Cup of Nations making Ghana the first team to win it thrice. He scored the two goals in the final of that tournament. He also played in the 1980 African Cup of Nations where Ghana failed to defend its title.

Coaching career

Opoku Afriyie was appointed team manager of Asante Kotoko in 2003. He has also served as the team manager and welfare officer of the Black Stars.

Honours

Club

Asante Kotoko * Ghana Premier League: 1980, 1981 *

Ghanaian FA Cup The Ghana FA Cup, currently known as the MTN FA Cup for sponsorship purposes, is the annual knockout competition in Ghanaian football created in 1958, a year after the independence of Ghana. Open to all Ghanaian football clubs, the competiti ...

: 1978

International

Ghana * African Cup of Nations:

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

Individual

* Africa Cup of Nations top scorer:

* Ghana Premier League Top scorer: 1979, 1981

References

1945 births 2020 deaths Ghanaian men's footballers Ghana men's international footballers Africa Cup of Nations–winning players 1978 African Cup of Nations players 1980 African Cup of Nations players 1982 African Cup of Nations players Asante Kotoko S.C. players Accra Hearts of Oak S.C. players Ghanaian football managers Men's association football forwards Ghana Premier League players Asante Kotoko S.C. non-playing staff Ghana Premier League top scorers 20th-century Ghanaian sportsmen {{Ghana-footy-bio-stub