Cameroon legend Joseph-Antoine Bell has waded into the debate about who is Africa’s best midfielder of all-time, claiming Ghanaian trio Abedi Ayew ‘Pele’, Abdul Razak and Ibrahim Sunday sit above Yaya Toure in the list.
Yaya Toure has been mentioned in recent debates Africa’s greatest midfielder of all-time following his astounding career which saw him wore the jerseys of several European sides including Monaco, Barcelona and Manchester City.
But former Cameroon and Olympique Marseille hero Joseph-Antoine Bell has rejected those assertions during an interview with Skyy Power FM.
According to the 65-year-old, Toure is a great player but he’s nowhere close to the likes of Abdul Razak, Abedi, Ibrahim Sunday and Abedi Ayew whom he saw terrorized defenders in the French league with Olympique Marseille.
“You cannot say Yaya Toure is Africa’s All Time Midfielder because he won Africa’s best Player of the Year four times,”
“For Toure to win Africa Best four times means he wasn’t an ordinary player. He was good and special,” he told Skyy Power FM.
He continued: “But Ghanaians can’t do Africa’s All Time midfielders without Abdul Razak, Pele, and Ibrahim Sunday, and I won’t compare Yaya Toure to them,”
“I am happy for the luck to have watched and played with Abedi Pele and Abdul Razak. They were greats” Bell concluded.
Bell was named “African Goalkeeper of the Century” by IFFHS, as part of their “Century Elections” ahead of his compatriots Thomas N’Kono – who finished second – and Jacques Songo’o being sixth.
He appeared at the FIFA World Cup on three occasions and clinched the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) on two occasions in a career spanning 20 years.
