Kwame Ayew[needs Akan IPA] (born 28 December 1973) is a Ghanaian former professional footballer who played as a striker.
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 28 December 1973 | ||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Tamale, Ghana | ||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.79 m (5 ft 10 in) | ||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Striker | ||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||
| 1990 | Africa Sports | ||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||
| 1990–1992 | Metz | ||||||||||||||||
| 1992–1993 | Al Ahli | 22 | (14) | ||||||||||||||
| 1993–1995 | Lecce | 34 | (7) | ||||||||||||||
| 1995–1996 | União Leiria | 13 | (1) | ||||||||||||||
| 1996–1997 | Vitória Setúbal | 23 | (8) | ||||||||||||||
| 1997–1999 | Boavista | 56 | (31) | ||||||||||||||
| 1999–2000 | Sporting CP | 26 | (7) | ||||||||||||||
| 2000–2001 | Yozgatspor | 19 | (11) | ||||||||||||||
| 2001–2002 | Kocaelispor | 28 | (10) | ||||||||||||||
| 2002–2003 | Shenyang Ginde | 28 | (14) | ||||||||||||||
| 2004–2006 | Inter Shanghai | 56 | (26) | ||||||||||||||
| 2007 | Vitória Setúbal | 12 | (3) | ||||||||||||||
| Total | 317 | (132) | |||||||||||||||
| International career | |||||||||||||||||
| 1992–2001 | Ghana | 25 | (9) | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
| |||||||||||||||||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||||||||||||||||
During nearly 20 years he played professionally in six countries, mainly in Portugal where he appeared for four teams in the 90s, amassing Primeira Liga totals of 131 games and 51 goals over the course of six seasons.
Club career edit
Born in Tamale, Ayew started playing professionally in France at only 17, spending a couple of Ligue 1 seasons with FC Metz, then moved to Qatar with Al Ahli SC and played in another country in the following two years, Italy, appearing and scoring sparingly for U.S. Lecce (for instance, he netted four goals in 1993–94's Serie A as his club ranked last with only 28 goals, a competition-worst).
Ayew moved to Portugal in 1995, and would remain there in the following five years. He started with U.D. Leiria and Vitória de Setúbal, then impressed at Boavista F.C. also in the Primeira Liga, scoring 15 times in 27 games in his second season to earn his team a best-ever at the time runner-up place, behind neighbours FC Porto.
After nearly 50 official goals for Boavista, Ayew moved to country giants Sporting Clube de Portugal. Even though he was never an automatic first-choice (having to battle for a starting berth with Alberto Acosta, Edmílson and Mbo Mpenza[1]), he netted seven goals in 13 starts as the Lions ended an 18-year drought and conquered the national championship.[2]
In the following years Ayew would play in Turkey (two seasons) and China (five), rarely settling with a club. In January 2007 the 33-year-old returned to former side Setúbal, contributing solidly as the Sadinos avoided top flight relegation by one point; he retired from the game shortly after.
International career edit
Ayew was a member of the Ghana national team that won the bronze medal at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, scoring six goals in as many games.[3] In total, he won 25 senior caps.
Education edit
Ayew attended Ghana Senior High School in Tamale.[4]
Personal life edit
Football ran in Ayew's family: his brothers Abedi and Sola also played football, the former spending a big part of his career with Olympique de Marseille. His nephews, André, Jordan and Rahim, also played the sport professionally.[5]
Career statistics edit
| Club | Season | League | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | ||
| Metz B | 1990–91 | |||
| 1991–92 | ||||
| Total | ||||
| Al Ahli | 1992–93[6] | Qatar Stars League | 22 | 14 |
| Lecce | 1993–94[7] | Serie A | 18 | 3 |
| 1994–95[6] | Serie B | 16 | 4 | |
| Total | 34 | 7 | ||
| União Leiria | 1995–96[8] | Primeira Liga | 13 | 1 |
| Vitória Setúbal | 1996–97[8] | Primeira Liga | 23 | 8 |
| Boavista | 1997–98[8] | Primeira Liga | 29 | 16 |
| 1998–99[8] | Primeira Liga | 27 | 15 | |
| Total | 56 | 31 | ||
| Sporting | 1999–2000[7][6] | Primeira Liga | 26 | 7 |
| Yozgatspor | 2000–01[7] | Süper Lig | 19 | 11 |
| Kocaelispor | 2001–02[7] | Süper Lig | 28 | 10 |
| Shenyang Ginde | 2003[6] | Chinese Jia-A League | 28 | 14 |
| Inter Shanghai, Inter Xian[a] |
2004[6] | Chinese Super League | 20 | 17 |
| 2005[6] | Chinese Super League | 23 | 8 | |
| 2006[6] | Chinese Super League | 13 | 1 | |
| Total | 56 | 26 | ||
| Vitória Setúbal | 2006–07[8] | Primeira Liga | 12 | 3 |
| Career total | 317 | 132 | ||
- ^ Renaming in 2006
Honours edit
Player edit
Boavista
Sporting
Kocaelispor
International edit
Ghana
References edit
- ^ "Inácio testa Ayew ao lado de Acosta" [Inácio tests Ayew next to Acosta]. Record (in Portuguese). 14 October 1999. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
- ^ "Ayew pode deixar Alvalade" [Ayew may leave Alvalade]. Record (in Portuguese). 2 June 2000. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
- ^ Kwame Ayew – FIFA competition record (archived)
- ^ Ibrahimah, Seidu (13 March 2015). "Ghanasco, Tamale, Sends Out Distress Call To Her Sons And Daughters". Modern Ghana. Retrieved 28 June 2020.
- ^ "Le clan Ayew, une dynastie de footballeurs" [The Ayew clan, a footballing dynasty] (in French). Slate Afrique. 6 February 2012. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
- ^ a b c d e f g Kwame Ayew at National-Football-Teams.com
- ^ a b c d "Kwame Ayew » Club matches". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 29 April 2020.
- ^ a b c d e Kwame Ayew at ForaDeJogo (archived)
External links edit
- Kwame Ayew at ForaDeJogo (archived)
- Kwame Ayew at National-Football-Teams.com
- Kwame Ayew at Soccerway
- Kwame Ayew at Olympics.com
- Kwame Ayew at Olympedia
