Michail Antonio, a striker for West Ham United, has made his first trip to Ghana to assist the Samba Football Academy.
On Sunday, November 10, the 34-year-old arrived at Kotoka International Airport and was greeted by the Ghanaian Hammers, a local contingent of West Ham supporters.
Antonio intends to visit Bompata in Kumasi while he is there to look at the academy project he has been assisting with.
He will interact with players at the Samba Stars Academy, offering young players—particularly those from underprivileged backgrounds—mentorship and direction.
“I’ve come here to do my work. We’ve started an academy here in Kumasi, Bompata,”
“We know about all the talent here; we’ve seen Mo [Kudus] is at the club (West Ham) right now. “We just want to give the boys over here the opportunity to break through to the Premier League.”
Antonio added that the ‘great pool’ of talent inspired him to invest in Ghana. “It’s just obviously the talent in the pool that Ghana has and to give the motherland the opportunity to get their players or family over to the UK or worldwide playing football,” he continued.
“You see the talent with Mo [Kudus] and so many other players moving. It’s just an inspiration for me to be able to give that opportunity to players here.”
Antonio plans to stay in Ghana for a few more days before heading to Jamaica for the international break.
