“My all-time greatest Ghanaian footballer would be Michael Essien. One because he was in London so I saw a lot of him when he played,” Hughton told TV3.
“I had the pleasure to meet him on a few occasions and to speak with him but he was a very influential player in I think what was the turnaround in what we are seeing now at Chelsea.”
Essien enjoyed a trophy-laden career which lasted over a decade and a half following his breakout year at Lyon, where he won two Ligue 1 titles.
He became Chelsea’s record signing when the club forked out £24.4 million to price him away from Lyon in 2005.
He spent almost a decade at Stamford Bridge, helping the Blues to win multiple Premier League and FA Cup titles, as well as the UEFA Champions League in 2012.
For Ghana, the midfielder was part of the team that qualified the Black Stars for their first-ever World Cup in 2006.
Essien also played at several AFCON tournaments and retired from the national team with 59 caps and nine goals.
