Before the start of the just concluded FIFA World Cup in Qatar, Ghana were the lowest-ranked team in the competition ranked a lowly 61st on FIFA’s Rankings. Clearly, most people didn’t expect much from them in the competition. However, after a drawn-out battle against Portugal ending in a slim 3-2 loss, and a crucial 3-2 win against South Korea, Ghana have proved that they are not to be overlooked on the world stage and it is exciting to see what they can do in subsequent competitions. At the heart of this budding team is rising Ghanaian sensation, Mohammed Kudus. To those who have been following his development, Kudus’ world cup exploits have not come as a surprise. The former FC Nordsjaelland player who has had some sterling with Ajax in the UCL this season has come a long way.
Unlike many African pro footballers plying their trade in Europe, Kudus is not the product of a foreign club’s academy. He was trained on African soil in Akosombo, Ghana based on Africa-centric philosophies and ideals. The Right to Dream Academy is an independent not-for-profit football academy founded in 1999 by Tom Vernon, a former scout with Manchester United who saw the abundance of talent in Africa and embarked on a mission to provide a pathway for young talented players. Right to Dream takes a different approach to developing future football stars through a network of football academies, professional football clubs and educational networks across the globe. In 2015, Right to Dream founder Tom Vernon became part owner of Danish club FC Nordsjaelland, signifying the birth of a strong affiliation with the RTD academy. Right to Dream has since gone on to secure bigger partnerships and now has a presence in Ghana, USA, Egypt and Denmark.
Born on August 2, 2000 in Nima, Accra, a community only a few minutes’ drive away from Akosombo, Kudus joined the academy when he was 12. At the age of 17, he starred for Ghana at the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup before leaving for Denmark in 2018 to sign for FC Nordsjaelland. He made his official debut for Nordsjaelland just three days after he turned 18, becoming the 9th youngest player in the club’s history to do so. He quickly established himself as a versatile creative box-to-box midfielder for the SuperLiga 2 side who impacted both the attacking and defensive phases of play. In 26 appearances in the 2018/2019 season, he scored 3 and assisted another 2, helping Nordsjaelland finish 6th on the table. In his second full season at FC Nordsjaelland, Kudus impressed in a more advanced role, scoring 11 goals that season. This helped him earn a deserved move to a top European Club.
On July 31, 2020, Ajax announced that they had sealed the transfer of Mohammed Kudus from FC Nordsjaelland for €9 million. The dream move to Ajax started brightly with the youngster netting a goal and 3 assists in his first 3 appearances. However, things took a downward turn on his UCL debut against Liverpool where he was forced to go off injured after 9 minutes. Following his return in January 2021, he had lost his starting berth and only started two games for the remainder of that season. He continued to struggle on the sidelines the following season appearing only 25 times and scoring 6 goals. At that point, he was already a full Ghana international and was part of their successful World Cup Qualifying campaign with Ghana booking their spot after a 1-1 draw with Nigeria in March 2022 to become the first African country to qualify for Qatar 2022.
Leading up to the just concluded World Cup, Kudus is starting to find his feet again, having scored 10 goals and assisted 2 in 21 appearances for Ajax including a stunner against Liverpool in the Champions League back in September. On the back of his club form, Kudus led Ghana to a crucial 3-2 win against Hueng-Min Son’s South Korea scoring twice in their second group stage encounter and dazzling on the world stage with his mazy runs into the box (one of which provided the assist for Andre Ayew’s equalizer in the game against Portugal), his press resistance and agility, his ball winning ability in deeper areas and his knack for notching goals higher up the field as well.
“EVERYONE HAS THE RIGHT TO DREAM” is displayed in bold letters on the top of the Right to Dream Park, FC Nordsjaelland’s home ground. Kudus’ exploits in Europe and the World Cup are now inspiring other players at the Right to Dream academy back home in Ghana. Many who now consider him their hero can look at his achievements so far and dream of their own big break. He is showing them that indeed, everyone has the right to dream and make that dream happen.
