Former Feyenoord player wants Ghana opportunity

Former Fetteh Feyenoord midfielder Solomon Asante has returned from Burkina Faso with a mission to continue with his exploits in the Ghana Premier League. 

He made the grades there resulting in overtures by Burkina Faso soccer officials to switch nationality.

The intelligent midfielder went as far as featuring for the senior national team of Burkina Faso, The Stallions, in a recent international friendly against South Africa.

But that could still not persuade him to change his lifetime dream of playing for Ghana.

Before then he had been compelled to play for the U-23 team in the London 2012 Olympic qualifiers.

The Burkinabe were more than convinced of Asante's talent after he had been acclaimed as the Best Player for two consecutive seasons while featuring for champions ASFA Yennega.

The 21-year-old player, who was a regular material for Feyenoord during their Premiership campaign in 2008, was loaned to ASFA Yennega following the Academy's painful demotion to Division One that same year.

But that move, albeit temporary, was a blessing in disguise for the skilful player who became a monarch of all he surveyed during the two-and-a-half seasons he spent with the Burkinabe champions.

"Having achieved everything as a player in Burkina Faso, I decided to return home to seek for fresh challenges even though they still want me to play for them," Asante told the Graphic Sports on arrival last Saturday.

Asante, so graceful on the ball, revealed that he also won the Goal King award, alongside the Best Player Award in the just-ended league with 14 goals.

Speaking to the Graphic Sports in the company of his ASFA Yennega teammate and former Asante Kotoko striker, Abass Bundu, an elated Asante was also proud of helping the club to win three league titles, the FA Cup and the Super Cup.

Like many others, Asante was a product of Coach Sam Arday and Mr Karel Brukken's Feyenoord enterprise and therefore reverts to the Academy's Fetteh base per the agreement with the Burkinabe champions after a previous six-year stint.

Considering his great talent, Asante is likely to land a deal with a top premiership club before the first registration window closes in the next few days.

Unlike him, his two other Feyenoord teammates-Mandela Ocansey and Alex Sowah- hope to continue with ASFA Yennega, with the former already opting to play for the West African country.

Asante was grateful to the management of Feyenoord for the wonderful support they had so far provided him in his career, and appealed to the Black Stars coach, Goran Stevanovic, to widen his net to cover African leagues since there are some Ghanaian players who are doing so well and, therefore, deserve a call-up into the senior national team to justify themselves.

Source: Graphic Sports