Anthony Annan

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Anthony Annan
Personal information
Date of birth	July 21, 1986 (1986-07-21) (age 21)
Place of birth	Accra, Ghana
Height	1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)
Playing position	Central midfielder
Club information
Current club	Stabæk Fotball
Youth clubs
2003	Eleven Wise
Senior clubs1
Years	Club	App (Gls)*
2003–2005 2005–2007 2007–2008 2008–present	Sekondi Hasaacas FC Accra Hearts of Oak I.K. Start → Stabæk (loan)	0- 0(-) 0- 0(-) 11 0(0) 08 0(0)
National team2
2007–present	Ghana	0014 0(0)
1 Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 28 May 2008. 2 National team caps and goals correct as of 12 June, 2008. * Appearances (Goals)

Anthony Annan (born July 21, 1986 in Accra) is a Ghanaian international footballer who plays for Norwegian club Stabæk, on loan from IK Start who got relegated before the 2008 season. He is an all-action central midfielder who is very comfortable playing defensively.

Contents 1 Club Career 1.1 Playing in Ghana 1.2 Transfer to Norway 2 National team 3 Playing style 4 References 5 External links

[edit] Club Career

[edit] Playing in Ghana

Anthony Annan began playing his football with a local colts Super Rainbow stars in cape-coast,Ghana.He also played for Cape-coast venomous Vipers in the Ghanaian Division one league before joined Sekondi Hasaacas in 2003 and later moved to Accra Hearts of oak in 2005. At Accra Hearts of Oak, Annan was regarded as the best young midfielder in Ghana. He combined midfield artistry with some goal scoring skills, and endeared himself to many football fans in Ghana. Anthony Annan joined Accra Hearts of Oak from Sekondi Hasaacas FC in the 2005/2006 league season.

[edit] Transfer to Norway

He signed for the Norwegian club I.K. Start in January 2007 , after a very promising career in Ghana with local club Accra Hearts of Oak. He quickly established himself as a first team regular during I.K. Start's preseason games, and showed skills both off and on the ball. Unfortunately he was plagued by injury and illness during the first part of the 2007 season, and did not gain trust from then headcoach Benny Lennartson in the important final games to avoid relegation.

After Start got relegated during the 2007 season, he joined Stabæk on loan until August 2008. He has been playing well in the heart of midfield as Stabæk has yet to loose in an impressive opening half of the season. Stabæk has hinted that they want to buy him from Start, but Start have stated that they would have to pay a "European transfer-fee". Instead, Annan has claimed that several "big" clubs have approached his agent and that he will leave Norway during the summer.

[edit] National team

A Junior and Olympic International for Ghana, Annan received his first senior call up for the national team on 20 March 2007 as a direct injury replacement for Essien for Ghana's FIFA International friendlies against Austria and Brazil in 2007.^[1] His first cap came against Brazil on March 27, 2007 at the Råsunda Stadium, Stockholm, Sweden when Ghana lost 0-1.^[2]

Annan was in fantastic form at the 2008 african cup of nations and is being scouted by numerous top flight European clubs, including Chelsea, Caen, and Borussia Dortmund.^[3]. He is rated as one of the most exciting young talents in the World^[4].

[edit] Playing style

Nicknamed Pablo Aimar in comparison to the Argentine national midfield superstar, Annan combines immense skill with a physical presence that complements his average height. Similar in style to Ghanaian midfield Superstar Michael Essien of Chelsea, Annan is touted as the next big thing to come out of Africa into Europe.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Anthony Annan player profile at ikstart.no
• Ghana Football Association - Ghana Football official website
• Video 1, Video 2
• Annan Interview