Asumah_Abubakar

Asumah Abubakar

Asumah Abubakar

Portuguese footballer

Asumah Abubakar-Ankrah (born 10 May 1997) is a footballer who plays as a forward for Swiss club Grasshoppers. Born in Ghana, he is a youth international for Portugal.

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Club career

Born in Kumasi, Ghana, Abubakar had a successful trial with Willem II in the summer of 2015, but he had to wait to the following year to sign a contract due to work permit problems. He eventually received a Portuguese passport as his father had been working in the nation for several years,[1][2] and on 2 March 2016 he committed to the Dutch club on a short-term deal.[3]

On 2 April 2016, whilst still a junior, Abubakar made his senior debut, coming on as a late substitute in a 2–3 Eredivisie home loss against FC Twente.[4] He transferred to MVV Maastricht for the 2018-2019 season on a free transfer.[5] After 27 appearances and another goalless season Abubakar transferred to Swiss club SC Kriens.[6] On 28 July 2019, he would score his first professional goal against FC Aarau after being subbed on in the 71st minute.[7] He ended the season third in the top scorer rankings.[6] In his second season, despite Kriens finishing mid-table, he again finished third in the scoring charts and won the Switzerland Challenge League Best Player Award.[8][9] Abubakar transferred to Swiss Super League club FC Lugano at the start of the 2021-2022 season for 100,000 Euros.[10] He scored his first goal for Lugano on his third appearance in a 1–1 draw with FC Basel.[11]

On 14 January 2022, Abubakar signed a contract with Luzern until 30 June 2024.[12]

On 29 January 2024, he transferred to Grasshoppers for an undisclosed fee.[13] He signed a one and half year contract, running until summer 2025, and rejoins his former coach Bruno Berner, whom he had worked with at Kriens. He debuted two days later in a midweek league match against his former club FC Lugano, coming on for the final 30 minutes of the 0–0 draw.[14] After bringing some much needed offensive power in his debut, he was nominated to the starting lineup for the next two games. However, in the second, a Zürich Derby match, he was sent off after pushing over FC Zürich midfielder Bledian Krasniqi during a confrontation after only twelve minutes played.[15] This was his first career sending off.

International career

Having acquired Portuguese citizenship, Abubakar chose to represent that country.[16] On 16 June 2016, he was selected for a 23-man preliminary list for the 2016 UEFA European Under-19 Championship[17] and also made the final squad, scoring in a 4–3 group stage win over the hosts Germany.[18] Shortly after, however, after doubts arose regarding his eligibility, the Portuguese Football Federation opted to immediately remove him from the competition pending further approval.[19]

Career statistics

Club

As of 10 February 2024[20]
More information Club, Season ...
  1. Matches in the relegation play-offs.
  2. Matches in 2023–24 UEFA Europa Conference League qualifying.

References

  1. [1]
    "Asumah: o luso-ganês que entusiama na Holanda e vem à seleção" [Asumah: the Portuguese-Ghanaian who thrills in the Netherlands and comes to the national team] (in Portuguese). Mais Futebol. 3 June 2016. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
  2. [2]
    "Asumah: do Gana ao Europeu sub-19, via Ermesinde" [Asumah: from Ghana to the under-19 European Championship, via Ermesinde] (in Portuguese). Mais Futebol. 8 July 2016. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
  3. [3]
    "Ghanaian teenager Asumah Abubakar signs for Dutch Eredivise [sic] Willem II Tilburg". Ghana Soccernet. 2 March 2016. Retrieved 3 July 2016.
  4. [4]
    "FC Twente vecht zich terug en wint in Tilburg" [FC Twente fight back and win in Tilburg] (in Dutch). FC Twente. 2 April 2016. Archived from the original on 20 April 2016. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
  5. [5]
    "MVV Maastricht sign Asumah in a two-year deal | Goal.com". www.goal.com. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  6. [6]
    admin. "Big blow for SC Kriens: top striker Asumah Abubakar is storming for Lugano with immediate effect". Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  7. [7]
    LiveScore, SofaScore com. "SC Kriens FC Aarau live score, video stream and H2H results - SofaScore". www.sofascore.com. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  8. [8]
    "SFL-Awards bleiben in YB-Hand". Bote der Urschweiz (in German). 21 January 2021. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  9. [9]
    "Ghanaian youngster Asumah Abubakar wins Swiss Challenge League Best Player award for 2020". GhanaSoccernet. 22 January 2021. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  10. [10]
    "Ghanaian striker Asumah Abubakar completes move to Swiss top-tier side Lugano". GhanaSoccernet. 11 January 2021. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  11. [11]
    "Asumah Abubakar-Ankrah nets debut Swiss Super League goal to help Lugano draw at FC Basel". GhanaSoccernet. 31 January 2021. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  12. [12]
    "WILLKOMMEN, ASUMAH!" (Press release) (in German). Luzern. 14 January 2022. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
  13. [13]
    "GC Zurich signs Asumah Abubakar". Grasshopper Club Zürich. 29 January 2024. Retrieved 29 January 2024.
  14. [14]
    "Torloses Unentschieden gegen Lugano". Grasshopper Club Zürich. 31 January 2024. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
  15. [15]
    "Vier Spiele für Crivelli, drei für Abubakar". sfl.ch. 12 February 2024.
  16. [16]
    "Asumah delighted with Portugal chance". Goal. 9 June 2016. Retrieved 3 July 2016.
  17. [17]
    "Convocatória pré-Europeu com 23 jogadores" [Preliminary European Championship call-up with 23 players] (in Portuguese). Portuguese Football Federation. 16 June 2016. Retrieved 3 July 2016.
  18. [18]
    "Portugal put paid to Germany hopes". UEFA. 14 July 2016. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
  19. [19]
    "Asumah retirado da convocatória" [Asumah removed from selection]. Record (in Portuguese). 16 July 2016. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
  20. [20]
    Asumah Abubakar at Soccerway
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