Position: Midfielder
Born: 22.11.85
Club: Udinese

Sulley Ali Muntari has an opportunity this summer to break the hearts of Italy, where he is seen to have the touch of the great Kaka and the combativeness of Edgar Davids.

The young Udinese starlet is a key component of the tireless midfield trio, also including Michael Esien and Stephen Appiah, which many coaches are extremely wary of.

The 21-year-old first drew major attention from European clubs at the 2001 World Youth Championship in Argentina where the Ghana Under-20s only lost out to the hosts in the final.

Muntari failed to make the most of a trial at Manchester United after drawing their attention during Ghana's run to the final of the 2001 Youth Championship but he was soon snapped up by Udinese.

In June 2004, Muntari was elevated to full Ghana squad, making his debut against Burkina Faso in the qualifiers for Germany 2006. The 'Black Stars' lost that day but responded well in the following game by thrashing South Africa 3-0, with Muntari opening the scoring.

Disaster struck for the player considered as a 'child prodigy' when he was sent home from the Athens Olympics for disciplinary reasons. After refusing to play for his country again, he eventually made a public apology and returned to help the 'Brazilians of Africa' qualify for this summer's showpiece.

Muntari is also a valuable member of the Udinese first team and his presence in midfield helped them qualify for the Champions League. He continues to take Serie A by storm and a string of stunning performances in the World Cup may indeed fuel speculation of a dream move to one of Europe's giants.

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