Matthew Amoah

Vitesse and Fortuna

Born in Tema, Amoah moved to the Netherlands at the age of 16 in 1996, where he linked with Vitesse Arnhem, spending eight seasons at the club. His early departure from his homeland has led to an almost anonymous profile there because he never played any top-level club football in Ghana, although in Amoah's home town of Tema his achievements in Europe have not gone unnoticed. With three brothers, Amoah learned his craft on the streets of the Ghanaian town and at the age of 15, he was spotted by scouts from the Dutch club while playing in an international youth tournament for his club Great Ambassadors. After Amoah moved to Vitesse, he did not play regularly. So in order to get regular playing action, Amoah needed a loan spell at Fortuna Sittard to find his feet in Dutch football before going back at Arnhem where coach Ronald Koeman gave him a chance. And the move paid off as the club's supporters named him their best player after the 2002–03 season, in which he scored 15 goals for the club and also competed in European club competition. Amoah trained at Vitesse where he developed into a good striker. It was his performances at Vitesse which gained him a call up to the Ghana national team. At Vitesse, he scored 62 goals in 174 appearances for the club.

Borussia Dortmund

Amoah signed with Borussia Dortmund in December 2005, during the winter transfer window, rejoining coach Bert van Marwijk, who managed him during the 1999–2000 season at…

Ghana first selected Amoah ahead of the 2002 CAF Africa Cup of Nations and it was in the tournament in Mali where he made his debut. But after the Black Stars were eliminated in the quarter- finals, Amoah only ever received one more call-up before the appointment of coach Ratomir Dujkovic in December 2004. The Serb brought Amoah back for his first game in charge, and Amoah has been in the squad ever since. An international since 2002 he made his debut on 21 January 2002, Segou in a Ghana, Morocco encounter at the Africa Cup of Nations: 2002, Amoah was an instrumental figure in Ghana's first qualification for the World Cup, scoring three goals in three consecutive and important qualifying matches. Matthew Amoah finished as Ghana's leading scorer in the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, his five strikes proving pivotal in the Black Stars' march to a second successive tournament. His tally added to the three goals he scored in the 2006 qualifiers that also made a major contribution to Ghana's march to their first-ever FIFA World Cup finals appearance. He also played in their World cup debut even though he did not score in any of the matches he played, his ability, runs and passes helped the team to the group of 16. In 2010, he helped his nation qualify for another world cup. He played in two matches, which he was brought in as a substitute. He is a member of the Ghanaian Golden Era of footballers including Fulham right back John Paintsil and Chelsea versatile midfielder Michael…

Club

International

Scores and results list Ghana's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Amoah goal.

Ghana

Africa Cup of Nations silver medal: 2010