Michael Essien was widely tipped to be one of Africa's next rising stars. Essien made his competitive senior debut in the 2002 Africa Cup of Nations against Morocco on 21 January 2002. but had played for Ghana in a pre-tournament friendly against Egypt on 4 January 2002. On 16 May 2006, Essien was selected to be part of the team that represented Ghana at the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany. He played in midfield with team captain Stephen Appiah and Sulley Muntari. Essien played in Ghana's 0–2 defeat to Italy, their 2–0 victory over the Czech Republic, and the 2–1 victory
Enefiok Essien of Laws. In 1998 he obtained a Doctor of Philosophy in law from University Birmingham, England. He is a lawyer, professor of law and the current Vice Chancellor of University of Uyo. In 2005, he was indicted by the Court of Appeal, Calabar of sexual misconduct against a student after expulsion from Uniuyo. During the period of the incident Enefiok Essien who was the invigilator and also head of the examination malpractice panel allegedly swayed vote against the female student involved. The court of appeal after asking Enefiok to swear an affidavit to counter the student's accusation refused, with accusations