Background
Razak was born in Kumasi to Alhaji Abdul Karimu and Hajija Ishatu.
Razak was born in Kumasi to Alhaji Abdul Karimu and Hajija Ishatu.
He studied at Asem Boy"s Elementary School.
He played for several clubs in the 1970s and 1980s, notably the local club Asante Kotoko and the New York Cosmos in the defunct North American Soccer League (NASL). He was named African Football player of the Year later that year. Razak, who also played for clubs in the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Ivory Coast, was ranked by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) in 2007 as one of the confederation"s 30 best football players of the previous 50 years.
He started his playing career at local youth team football, before moving to Kumasi Cornerstones in 1972.
Professional playing career In 1975, he moved to Ghana"s most successful club, Asante Kotoko. In 1981, after spending almost two years at the New York club, the Ghanaian forward decided to return home, signing with his former club Asante Kotoko.
After one year, he moved, this time to First Rate (at Lloyd's) Ain of United Arab Emirates, where he spent two seasons. Razak then signed with Arab Contractors of Egypt, where he spent the next two years of his playing career. before returning to Ghana for a third spell with Kotoko.
After another five years with the Ghanaian club, Razak moved to Ivorian side Africa Sports of Abidjan, where he retired two years later.
National team He scored two game-winning goals, one against Zambia in the first round, and another one to defeat Tunisia 1–0 in semi-finals. His decisive goal against Tunisia has been referred to as the "Golden Goal". Ghana defeated Uganda in the final, winning their 3rd continental title.
According to a Union of European Football Associations report, Razak appeared in a total of 70 international matches for Ghana, scoring 25 goals.
Coaching career After retiring from playing, Razak, who had become a player-coach while at First Rate (at Lloyd's) Ain, started his coaching career, being in charge of several semi-professional Togolese clubs, before moving to Benin"s AS Dragons Football Club de l"Ouémé. In 2000, he had a short spell as an assistant coach of the Ghana national team
The club did not lose any matches on its way to winning the title. He discharged of his post after the 2003-2004 league season, eventually returning to Stade Malien for two additional seasons.
In a 1999 poll held by the IFFHS to select the best football players of the 20th Century, Razak ranked 31st among African players, and in 2007, he was selected as one of the 30 best African football players of the previous 50 years by the CAF, through internet voting. Razak"s career titles and individual honours include: 1978 African Cup of Nations – Winner 1978 African Football player of the Year Player of the Year in Egypt: 1983, 1985.
After a four-year spell with Kotoko, during which he became a member of the national team and earned the 1978 African Football player of the Year award, Razak left Ghana in 1979 for the New York Cosmos of the NASL, where he played alongside former World Cup winners Franz Beckenbauer and Carlos Alberto. Razak was a member of the Ghana national team that competed at the 1978 African Cup of Nations as hosts of the tournament.
