Godfred Donsah shares father's 'migrant' story as he joins Football Cares to raise funds for refugees in Europe

Godfred Donsah is a Serie A star at Bologna, but he knows all too well about the migrant crisis. “My father walked seven days in the desert.”

Still only 19, the Ghanaian midfielder shot to fame at Cagliari last season and has been tipped for a future at Juventus after Bologna won a bidding war with Napoli.

His story is remarkable and particularly important to share at this time when the Football Cares initiative is raising funds for refugees pouring into Europe.

“My mother always said you have to take what comes and go forward,” Donsah told La Gazzetta dello Sport.

“My father set off for Italy. We didn’t hear from him for the first two weeks. He had to walk seven days in the desert.

“He told me that when he set off from Libya it was a small boat with 22 people in it. They were afraid it was going to capsize. There was one guy who was causing trouble, so he was thrown overboard.

“My father left Ghana because he couldn’t afford to pay for food and school for me and my sisters. I even worked in the plantations, but it’s dangerous, because you risk getting bit by snakes.

“When my father went away, he sent money home, but I didn’t hear from him for four or five years. Sometimes he’d call and I was outside playing football, so would just miss him.

“Things have changed since my Dad’s time, as he went to Italy for work, but now there is none in this country. Instead people are fleeing war.

“I ask the Italians this: if you can, then please help. I have a friend in the city who wants to be a football player and he said people are helping him. Bologna is a good place for hospitality.

“I couldn’t afford boots, so I played barefoot and now my foot is like a hammer! I studied English not because I could become a doctor, but to understand. If I had to sign a contract, I wanted to know what was written on it. I hope to go to England in a few years to complete my studies. Watching cartoons on TV helps me learn Italian now.”

Donsah made his first foray into Italian football at Hellas Verona, though the teenager was star-struck.

“In my first training sessions with Verona, I was always staring at Luca Toni. He asked why and I said ‘I don’t understand what I’m doing here. I watched you on TV in 2006. You always scored.’

“God has brought me here, as on my own I am not stronger than anyone. I can only give my all and work hard.

“I had told Cagliari I was open to staying with them in Serie B after relegation, but Bologna wanted me more. I am just disappointed the Cagliari fans attacked me on social media.”