NEUFC has roped in Former Crystal Palace forward Kwesi Appiah for the next seasonof ISL. The club announced his signing on all their social media handles today.
Apart from various English clubs, the English born forward has also represented Ghana national football team. Interestingly, former NEUFC head coach Avram Grant, then manager of the black stars and current head coach Gerard Nus, his then assistant, handed Appiah his debut for the national team.The Ghanaian proved the duo right with a series of lively displays as a replacement for malaria-stricken Asamoah Gyan, and scored in the quarter-final triumph over Guinea in the AFCON 2015. His most recent goal for the Ghana national team came last year in a 3-1 friendly victory against Mauritanian National team.
Throughout his career, most notable club Kwesi represented was Premier League side Crystal Palace. The Eagles signed him after an impressive 2011-2012 season with Margate FC in the Isthmian League where he scored 22 goals in 24 matches. He spent 5 years(2012-2017) with Crystal Palace. Although most of the time in the 5 years saw Appiah being loaned out to various clubs across the tiers in English football which included AFC Wimbledon, Yeovil Town, Reading, Notts County, Aldershot Town and Cambridge United. One of his best stints saw Appiah netting 16 goals in two seasons for Cambridge United.
In 2015, while away on international duty with the Ghana national team the striker suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury,which saw him stay away for the entirety of 2016. In 2017 Crystal Palace again loaned out Appiah to Norwegian top flight club Viking FK for a very short stint after his return from injury. After his contract with Crystal Palace ended, Appiah signed with AFC Wimbledon, with whom he had spent a season on loan earlier. Three years on with them, Appiah is now moving to India.
The Ghanaian fits perfectly into Gerard's Positional gameplay. His positioning and pace would be a great addition to the NEUFC squad. Appiah is the 6th foreign signing of the Highlanders for the next season, all of whom come from different countries. It'd be interesting to see how the diverse group gels together in the coming weeks.
Highlander Brigade welcomes Kwesi Appiah to the NorthEast of India. We hope that we get to see a bunch of goals from him in the coming season. Good luck Appiah!!
Nice signing by NEUFC