Michael Essien Michael Essien Michael Kojo Essien (sometimes written in French: Michaël Essien) (born 3 December 1982) is a Ghanaian professional footballer. He has also been capped for the Ghana national team more than 50 times. Essien started his career playing for Liberty Professionals in Ghana. In 2000, he moved to France to join Bastia, where he would spend three seasons and appear in over 60 matches before joining Ligue 1 title holders Lyon in 2003. At Lyon, Essien won back-to-back league titles in 2003–04 and 2004–05 and also played in the UEFA Champions League for the first time. During his five-year
Michael Essien challenge, stating that while he desires to be perceived as a player who "unsettles" opponents, he was not a malicious or an unsporting player; Hamann publicly accepted Essien's apology. In January 2006, Essien was himself stretchered off the field after a challenge from West Ham United captain Nigel Reo-Coker, and was sidelined for three weeks. Essien scored his first goal for Chelsea from a low cross from Shaun Wright-Phillips on 11 March 2006, in a 2–1 victory over Tottenham Hotspur. His second goal came on 17 April 2006, against Everton with a powerful strike after an assertive burst through the