Michael Essien (born 3 December 1982) is a Ghanaian football coach and former player who is currently an assistant coach at Danish Superliga club Nordsjælland.
A midfielder, Essien started his career playing for Liberty Professionals in Ghana. In 2000, he moved to France to join Bastia, where he would spend three seasons and appear in over 60 matches before joining Ligue 1 title holders Lyon in 2003. At Lyon, Essien won back-to-back league titles in 2003–04 and 2004–05, and won Ligue 1 Player of the Year in 2005. The same year, Essien signed with Premier League side Chelsea for a £24.4 million transfer fee. The fee made him the most expensive African footballer at that time. At Chelsea, Essien helped the club win the Premier League in 2006 and 2010, as well as three FA Cups and one League Cup. He won the UEFA Champions League in 2011–12, while also placing as runner-up in the 2007–08 UEFA Champions League. He has won the Chelsea Goal of the Season award twice, in the 2006–07 and 2008–09 seasons.
He also played for the Ghana national team, earning more than 50 caps. He contributed to Ghana's third-place finish at the 1999 FIFA U-17 World Championship and their runner-up position at the 2001 FIFA World Youth Championship. Essien made his senior team debut in January 2002 and has represented his nation at three Africa Cup of Nations tournaments. Essien also represented Ghana at the 2006 and 2014 FIFA World Cups.
Essien was born in Accra to Aba Gyandoh, a baker, and James Essien of Awutu Beraku, an aboriginal Guan town in central Ghana. Essien attended Gomoa Nyanyano DC Primary and JSS. He began his football career after graduating from St. Augustine's College in Cape Coast, playing at a local club, Liberty Professionals. Essien grew up a boyhood Aston Villa fan, influenced by his father's love for the Birmingham based club. Essien idolised Paul McGrath modelling many aspects of his game around the midfielder's playing style.
Essien broke through when he played in the 1999 FIFA U-17 World Championship in New Zealand. European scouts began to take notice, prompting a trial at Manchester United in April 2000. He played in the club's under-17 team's defeat to Derby County.
Manchester United offered him a contract, but he was ineligible to obtain a work permit in the United Kingdom. He, therefore, considered joining Belgian feeder club Royal Antwerp. However, his mother meanwhile preferred a move to France instead.
In July 2000, Essien was signed by Division 1 club Bastia and made his debut for the club on 30 September 2000 in a league match against Metz, appearing as a substitute for captain Laurent Casanova. Essien did not immediately command a consistent place in the team, being deployed in various positions in the back four. He ultimately finished the 2000–01 campaign with only 13 league appearances and one goal, which came in the return leg against Metz in a 3–2 defeat. The following season, Essien was given opportunity by manager Robert Nouzaret to play in central midfield and he flourished in this new role. Essien formed midfield partnerships with Nicolas Dieuze and Cyril Jeunechamp and scored vital goals in victories over Nantes, Lorient and Guingamp. On 12 January 2002, Essien scored the equalising goal against Marseille at the Stade Vélodrome to even the match at 2–2. He also scored a goal in the Coupe de la Ligue against Le Mans. Future Chelsea teammate Didier Drogba converted a goal for Le Mans in the match.
In the 2002–03 season, Essien developed into an undisputed starter under new manager Gérard Gili. However, his tenacious and physical style of play also began to take form as he received 12 yellow cards in league play. He opened the new campaign by scoring on his season debut against Lens in a 1–1 draw and converted five more league goals, which included one in a 2–0 victory over the defending champions Lyon. Following the campaign, in which Bastia finished mid-table for the third consecutive season, Essien drew interest from Paris Saint-Germain, Lyon and Marseille.
Paris Saint-Germain made Bastia the highest offer and it was accepted. However, Essien rejected PSG's contract offer, instead agreeing terms with the two-time defending champions Lyon, who paid Bastia €7.8 million for the transfer. Upon his arrival, Essien was assigned the number 4 shirt and played as a box-to-box midfielder, which allowed him the freedom to protect and assist playmaker Juninho while defensive midfielders Edmílson and Mahamadou Diarra assisted the defence and directed the distribution. Essien made his club debut in the team's Trophée des champions match against Auxerre on 27 July 2003. In just the fifth minute of play, Essien scored his first goal for the club, and four minutes later, Diarra scored a goal. Lyon won the match 2–1, giving Essien his first club honour as a player. In just the third match of the campaign, Essien scored his first league goal for the club in a 3–1 victory over Monaco. He featured regularly for the rest of the campaign, making 33 more league appearances and scoring two more goals, against Bordeaux and Rennes respectively. On 23 May 2004, Lyon sealed their third consecutive league title by defeating Lille 3–0 at the Stade Gerland. Essien appeared as a substitute in the match. In the UEFA Champions League, Essien appeared in eight of the ten matches Lyon contested and the club was ultimately eliminated by eventual champions, Porto.
In his final season at Lyon, Essien appeared in all but one league match as Lyon were crowned champions for the fourth straight season. The match he missed was as a result of a red card endured in the previous league match. Essien also scored three goals and collected 11 yellow cards, tied for second-worst in the league. His performances in the league resulted in him being voted the 2005 Player of the Year by France's National Union of Professional Footballers (UNFP). Essien also helped Lyon to reach the quarter-finals of the 2004–05 UEFA Champions League where he put in dynamic performances and scored five goals in the tournament. Lyon was eventually eliminated from the tournament in a penalty shoot-out against PSV. At the end of the season, he was named Ligue 1 Player of the Year. His honour started a record streak of UNFP Player of the Year awards for Lyon players, with the streak coming to an end in 2008 following Karim Benzema's victory. He was also nominated for the 2005 FIFA World Player of the Year Award. He placed 22nd in 2005. His acclaim drew attention from Chelsea, which he eventually signed for.
On 14 August 2005, Lyon and Chelsea agreed a £24.4 million fee for Essien, ending one of the longest-running transfer sagas. At the time, the fee made Essien Chelsea's most expensive signing of all time, surpassing the £24 million Chelsea paid for Didier Drogba the previous summer. The transfer went through on 19 August. The transfer came under scrutiny in the Stevens inquiry report, which expressed concerns because of the lack of co-operation from agents Pini Zahavi and Barry Silkman.
Essien made his debut as a second-half substitute against Arsenal on 21 August 2005, wearing the number 5 on his shirt. The match ended in a 1–0 victory to Chelsea. He made an assist in his full debut against West Bromwich Albion, and he replaced the injured Claude Makélélé in the defensive midfield role against Sunderland in the 2–0 win on 10 September 2005. He soon cemented his place in José Mourinho's side, starting in 31 domestic league matches, as well as 11 appearances in other cup competitions.
On 15 December 2005, Essien was given a two-match ban by UEFA for a controversial tackle on Dietmar Hamann, which resulted in his suspension from Chelsea's Champions League second round tie with eventual European champions Barcelona. Essien apologised to Hamann for the challenge, stating that while he desires to be perceived as a player who "unsettles" opponents, he was not a malicious or an unsporting player; Hamann publicly accepted Essien's apology. In January 2006, Essien was himself stretchered off the field after a challenge from West Ham United's captain, Nigel Reo-Coker, and was sidelined for three weeks.