Ghana defender Jonathan Mensah begins adjusting to MLS

Published on: 22 February 2017
Ghana defender Jonathan Mensah begins adjusting to MLS
Jonathan Mensah and Columbus Crew teammate Harrison Afful

Pondering a potential move to Major League Soccer, Jonathan Mensah reached out to his good friend and fellow Ghana national team member Harrison Afful.

The two have been friends for more than eight years, making Afful, the Crew right back, "like a brother to me now," Mensah said.

Mensah asked about the people in the league and how its style and tactics have progressed over the years.

He watched matches, too, mostly because of Afful and other Ghanaian players in the league.

Now, close to two months after he was acquired from Russian club Anzhi Makhachkala as the Crew's second designated player, the 26-year-old center back finally gets to experience the league for himself.

Having just recently returned with Afful from international duty at the Africa Cup of Nations in Gabon, Mensah is participating in his first workouts with his new club.

"He explained a lot to me," Mensah said of Afful. "And I'm glad to kind of like get into the team myself, see what he was talking about. It's a very true style of play; it's very good."

Coach Gregg Berhalter lauded Mensah's physicality and strength in one-on-one situations in the days after signing him.

A few days in person with him solidified that impression despite Mensah not having been with the Crew for its preseason training trip to Brazil.

"We've been in a different type of schedule in terms of the tremendous physical load that we've been giving them, but we're getting him up to speed, and seems like it's going really well," Berhalter said.

The Africa Cup of Nations "wasn't bad," Mensah said, but the fourth-place finish wasn't what Ghana wanted. With the competition more than two weeks behind him, Mensah now spends his time getting acquainted with the Crew and MLS.

"Now we can focus on the club level," Mensah said. "I'm just glad to be here and wish to help the team every time we play."

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