Q&A: New Asante Kotoko Signing Kwame Opoku

Kwame Opoku completed his transfer to the Porcupine club on Tuesday and the lethal striker cannot wait to get started at his new club.

The 20-year-old striker signed a three-year contract on Tuesday and he tells Kotoko Media in an exclusive interview he is living a dream becoming a part of the Porcupine family.

The lethal striker signed contract documents at our secretariat in Kumasi on Tuesday after impressing Maxwell Konadu and his coaching staff in a three-week trial.

He comes as a good addition to our attacking department as we strive to improve on our scoring rate having scored a paltry ten goals in 11 Premier League games this season.

Maxwell Konadu said: "Kwame Opoku is a good striker; he is very quick and has an eye for goals, and as a striker that is what is required. Once he is able to score goals that's very ok. His signing is in line with what we are looking for."

"Goal scoring has been a problem for the whole country and once Kwame Opoku keeps scoring like this, we would be happy and the supporters would be happy as well."

"He brings something special onboard. Every player has his qualities and Kwame also has the way he plays. His style is not like the others. Kwame brings something onboard that I think would help the team as a whole. He has very powerful shots and he's very good in the air too so he would help us."

We later sat down with Kwame Opoku for his first interview and the following we're his responses to our questions;

Kotoko Express App (KEA): Kindly take us through your football journey.

Kwame Opoku (KO): I started playing competitive football in 2016 with Division-Two side, Cape Coast Metro Youth. I scored 18 goals in 19 games that season. I featured for them again in the 2017 season but was ruled out a lot of times through injuries. I played five games that season and scored four goals.

I joined Nkoranza Warriors in the second round of the 2018 season and scored four goals in five games. That was the season that was cut short after the Anas Arimyaw Anas exposè. I featured for Nkoranza Warriors in the Normalisation Committee Special Competition. , In all, I scored ten goals in 15 games for Nkoranza Warriors. I proceeded to Serbian Premier Division side, Cukaricki FK, played for a month and came back to Ghana.

KEA: Tell us about your national team experience.
KO: I was invited to the U20 in 2018 for the African Cup qualifiers. I featured in five friendly games and scored three goals. I was also called into the U23 in 2019 for the AFCON qualifier against Algeria. I, however, could not feature in that game due to passport issues.

You spent three weeks on trials here before your signing. How has that helped you in terms of your integration with the players?

It afforded me the opportunity to train with the other players and I must say that I have gotten to know their style of play just as they have also seen mine. I know the players even before I get into a competitive game with them and that I think would help a lot. I know the qualities of each of the players and the telepathy between us is already showing at the training ground. Now, we won't go into games without knowing how to cope with each other on the field.

KEA: How does it come to you after finally become a Porcupine?

KO: It feels great. It is a dream come true for me. I grew up supporting this club and I promised myself I was going to play Kotoko when I became a professional footballer. I was very elated when I got the opportunity to come here for the trials but the feeling after signing my contract is beyond measure. It's a worth more than all the gold in Obuasi.

My signing could have come a bit earlier but for some issues, I had with my discussions with my former club. But I am here finally and cannot wait to get on to the field with my colleagues. I am proud of the red shirt and would defend it everywhere I play.

KEA: You have come at a point where we are in dare need of goals in the ongoing season. Does that put any pressure on you?

KO: Not at all. I am here to work; to push myself to the very limit, improve and then impact positively on the team. Football is made up of a collection of players and things work well when everybody plays his part. I would play my part and hope that my performance would the others to strive for the best and vice versa. I am not under pressure. I cannot do it all by myself, neither can any of my colleagues. We can get ourselves up as one unit. A team that is built on an individual, can never survive.

KEA: This is a result-oriented club and one with a fam base so interested in wins. Are you ready for the fans?

KO: Kotoko is a top club and supporters of teams like these detest defeats. It is normal for every big club. But what we must also understand is that we are human and so cannot have our day all the time. The truth is that we cannot win every game. However, our charge is to win the most number of matches in order to win the league and competitions.

We would win some games, draw some and lose some but what is important is that we win the championship. We would need the supporters to support us through thick and thin, happiness and despair because that is what makes a good supporter. I plead that they pray for me and my colleagues and back us with total support and we would make them happy in the end.