Afriyie Acquah eyes move to English Premier League

Torino midfielder Afriyie Acquah has admitted he wants to follow in his former teammate Matteo Darmian’s footsteps, by joining a Premier League club in the future, as per Football Italia (via Tuttosport).

The 23-year-old Ghana international just missed out on the chance to link up with Darmian at Torino, as he arrived this summer, however the pair did briefly play alongside each other at Sicilian outfit Palermo in the 2010-11 season.

Darmian, 25, was a relative unknown when he joined Torino in 2011, however after excelling for the club, he established himself as first choice right back for Italy and eventually secured a move to the Premier League giants, something Acquah hopes to one day emulate.

Speaking to Tuttosport, he said: “When I came here, I spoke with [Coach Giampiero] Ventura and I told him that someday I’d like to go to England and play in the Premier League.

“He told me that if I work hard over these years, then I can make it.

“I remember Darmian, who played by my side at Palermo. He wasn’t so strong back then, but he developed here at Torino until eventually he was noticed and signed by Manchester United.”

Although Acquah is still relatively young, Torino is already his fifth club, as he has also represented Palermo, Parma and Sampdoria in Serie A, as well as Hoffenheim in the German Bundesliga during his career.

After impressing in the second half of last season while on loan with Sampdoria in the second half of last season, Acquah joined Giampiero Ventura’s men on a four-year-deal and he has featured in all three of their Serie A matches this term.

Torino have started the campaign in good form, winning twice and drawing once in three league games so far, and Acquah has already registered a goal for the club, during a 2-2 draw against Verona last time out.