Feature: Boateng buoyed by fine Getafe form

By Phil Barnett

Ghanaian Derek Boateng is making all the right noises as speculation buzzes around his ears, trotting out the traditionally coy response by combining flirtation with modesty.

As footballing plaudits go, being courted by Harry Redknapp is a real feather in your cap.

So there is little wonder Getafe's Derek Boateng has a spring in his step at the moment having recently attracted headlines reporting the notoriously canny Tottenham manager was monitoring him ahead of a potential swoop in the January transfer window.

Boateng probably did his burgeoning reputation few favours with a silly sending off against Barcelona a few days later, right under the spotlight that he finds himself engulfed by at the moment.

But nevertheless he remains an interesting prospect — even at the ripe age of 27 — having become just the latest in a line of players to make their names at the perennially over-achieving Madrid-based club.

Boateng is making all the right noises as speculation buzzes around his ears, trotting out the traditionally coy response by combining flirtation with modesty.

The Ghana international, who can already number seven clubs on his CV, blossomed during his first season in the Spanish Primera Division last year and has started the current campaign buoyantly with trademark energetic performances in the heart of the midfield.

“I am playing at a good level at the moment, I am happy with my form and hopefully it will continue,” he said.

“I am hearing about the interest from clubs such as Tottenham and Sevilla, but I am down to earth.”

Despite so far playing only a year in the prestigious La Liga, Boateng — who played at the 2006 World Cup and went to last summer's tournament in South Africa without making an impact — claims playing in England is an ambition he shares with many of his peers around the world.

“All good players would love to play in England and players in my position on the field are stars there, I like the physical part of football, so I would love to play there one day,” he added.

“Tottenham are a fantastic team, White Hart Lane is a great stadium, so you never know, it would be fantastic. However, I am happy here in Getafe.”

Indeed, Boateng's assertion about his playing style is accurate.

Having made his name in a country where subtle footballing skills are valued higher than aggressive zeal and all-action tackling, the former winger can be hopeful of combining the refinement he has learned under revered Getafe coach Michel and transferring that to the buzzing English game.

However, after a career that has taken him through seven clubs in nine years — incorporating Kalamata, Panathinaikos, Crete, AIK, Beitar Jerusalem, Cologne and now Getafe, it would perhaps serve him well to knuckle down in Spain and attempt to shed his reputation as a nomadic journeyman.