Former AshantiGold striker, Shaibu Yakubu says the 2003 season was the best in his career.
Yakubu won the Ghana Premier League goal king in his debut season with AshGold in the domestic top-flight.
He scored 13 goals that season, above Ghana’s all-time leading top scorer Asamoah Gyan and Kwadwo Poku with 12 goals each.
“I will say the 2003 season was the best year of my career. It was my first season in the Ghana Premier League and I also won the goal king. I scored beautiful goals that season, my goal against Kotoko in Kumasi was the best goal for me. That season, Asamoah Gyan and I were the talk of town but I won the goal king with 13 goals and Asamoah Gyan had 12”, he told Ohene-Bampoe Brenya on Happy Sports on Happy 98.9.
Despite his huge potential and talent, Yakubu said he doesn’t regret he couldn’t reach the same level as former Black Stars captain Asamoah Gyan as both came to the limelight after the 2003 season.
“I don’t regret that I didn’t make it to the level of Asamoah Gyan.
I played more than five seasons in the Ghana Premier League. After the goal king, I was depressed that I had stayed in the domestic league for long. There was pressure coming from fans, family and others because normally people who won the goal king award got the chance to travel outside and continue their career the following season.
“So I decided to leave in the 2006-07 season. I told then AshantiGold SC Chief Executive Officer Kudjoe Fianoo to accept the $70,000 that was quoted by the Turkish club.
I pressured them to accept the money because they didn’t want to say the money was small for a former goal king award winner”.
Shaibu Yakubu also opened up on being dropped from Ghana’s Olympic team ahead of the 2004 Athens Olympic Games.
He was part of the squad that played during the qualifiers that qualified Ghana to the Olympics Games. Yakubu’s goal ensured Ghana got an equalizer sending the game to the penalty shootout which the Black Meteors won and secured a ticket to the Games.
Shaibu Yakubu was later dropped for the Games despite his heroic efforts.
“We respect professional players than local-based players in this country. I was dropped from the Olympics games squad because some GFA officials told the coach to drop me”
“The coach told me that he will personally take me to the Olympic games to have a feel of it. The coach told me that GFA members had a meeting and told him not to take me there. I was really disappointed and sad because I honestly don’t know what I did for anyone or the GFA to ask the coach to drop me”.
Shaibu Yakubu is currently in Ghana.
