Swansea’s Bargain Buy
Personal information
Full name: Andre Morgan Rami Ayew
Date of birth: 17 December 1989
Age: 25
Place of birth: Seclin, France
Height: 1.76 m (5 ft 9 in)
Playing position: Forward
Club information
Current team: Swansea City
Number: 10
Youth career
1999–2006: Nania
2006-2007: Marseille
Senior career
2007–2015: Marseille 202 Appearances, 60 goals
2008–2009 → Lorient (loan) 24 Appearances, 3 goals
2009–2010 → Arles-Avignon (loan) 26 Appearances, 4 goals
2015– Swansea City 6 Appearances, 3 goals
National team
2009: Ghana U20 12 Appearances, 4 goals
2007– Ghana 62 Appearances, 11 goals
Andre Ayew has begun life in the England on a very good note. The Ghana international is already being talked about as another of Garry Monk’s many astute buys. Swansea saw off competition from West Ham to sign the 25-year-old on a Bosman free transfer after his deal with Marseille expired. Ayew moved to England after a stellar few years at Marseille and is already one of the often mentioned recruits of the league after his inspiring first few outings. The Ghanaian has come into a side that many believe has one of the most solid midfield set ups in the league and already made it stronger with his all round performance. His tenacity, off the ball, movement, skill and his ability to bring his teammates into play while being afforded the least of spaces make him a constant menace to the opposition.
Ayew is often seen stitching short passes to help his team build play and dominate the proceedings in the middle of the park. So far he has completed 80% of the passes he has attempted in the league, a number that serves well for an attacking midfielder. So far he averages close to 1.5 key passes per game and more than three shots per game. While he has been renowned for his dribbling abilities, Ayew, despite his physical approach to the game, is getting acclimatised to English football. He has been tenacious in his approach, averaging a tackle every 17 minutes. He has shown a tendency to plunge into harmless tackles often in the past to break the opposition’s move, and that could work well in his favour in EPL, a league renowned for its physical approach. He might not be counted as one of the tall ones in the league, but Ayew has built up a reputation as a strong player in the air. As he adjusts more to the league, we could see Ayew develop as one of the top attacking midfielders in the league. His nimbleness with the ball and without it could well turn out to be troublesome to handle if he is afforded the time and space.
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Ayew, however, has some aspects of his game that he will need to work upon to develop as one of the influential midfielders in the league. His defensive record has been a spot of bother in the past and he will need to stay disciplined and on his feet to not disrupt the plans of his manager. The stock of Garry Monk and Swansea has risen considerably over the last two years and Ayew alongside the likes of Gylfi Sigurdsson, a resurgent Jonjo Shelvey and Ki Sung-Yueng could help write the brightest chapter in the club’s history. Note – Swansea play, Everton (H), Southampton (A), Tottenham (H) and Stoke(H) in the next four match days and Ayew could well prove to be your masterpiece in the fantasy league. At 7.2 million, the go to man of an up and coming Swansea team should be in your team for at least some time.
Ghana’s Ayew has been named African Player of the Month of August in the English Premier League. He beat off competition from the other shortlisted players – Yaya Toure of Manchester City and Algerian Riyad Mahrez of Leicester City. In a statement released by Tunde Adelakun, CEO of Award organisers New African Soccer, Ayew received “overwhelming support in an unprecedented voting number count for the monthly award. “We could see why Ayew won the award and kudos to him and to the participants in the vote. He just came into the Premier league and hit the ground running – scoring spectacularly against champions Chelsea in his debut and playing well in the month,” he added. Ayew’s blistering start to life in England was also rewarded with the Barclays Premier League player of the month prize for August. He took the award ahead of Swansea team-mate Bafetimbi Gomis, Mahrez as well as Manchester City pair David Silva and Aleksandar Kolarov.
Ayew should look to kick on and fully establish himself as a real threat for the rest of the 2015/16 season. Coming off the back of a 9-goal season with Marseille, Ayew should look to better that after being handed an integral role within the Swans line-up. Given that he is quite versatile along the forward positions, he should find himself given ample opportunities to lead by example.