Joseph Antoine Bell
Legendary African goalkeeper Joseph Antoine Bell has spoken highly of ex Ghanaian internationals Abedi Pele and Karim Abdul Razak, saying that “I am happy I was lucky to have played with such good players” insisting that they are beyond comparison.
Antoine Bell is revered not just on the African continent but in world football for his exploits in the game at club and national team level. The IFFHS, ranked him the African Goalkeeper of the Century.
He belonged to a generation of Cameroonian footballers that represented the Indomitable Lions at three FIFA World Cups and several Africa Cup of Nations tournaments.
He also had a club career where he played for teams in Ivory Coast, Egypt and France.
Along the line, he played with Abedi Pele and also was a teammate of Karim Abdul Razak in the mid-80.
Abdul Razak known as the ‘GoldenBoy’ won the African Player of the Year Award in 1978 and played with Anotine Bell from 1983 at Egyptian side Arab Contractors.
Abedi Ayew ‘Pele’, a three time African Player of the Year winner also played with Bell from 1987 at Olympique Marseille in France.
Speaking to Takoradi based Skyy Power FM in an interview about Africa’s greatest midfielders, Bell said “there was a player in Ghana called Abdul Razak, there was another midfielder in Ghana they called him Abedi Pele eh, those were great players and there were others before, Ibrahim Sunday”.
“So you in Ghana just can’t say you’re picking the greatest midfielders in Africa and there is no Ghanaian amongst them” he mentioned.
“I had the luck to watch and play with Abedi Pele in Olympique Marseille, played with Abdul Razak in Arab Contractors, I was lucky having such good players around…” he concluded.
