Samuel Owusu has what it takes to thrive with Black Stars

Virtually unknown until his maiden call-up into the Black Stars ahead of the African Cup of Nations in Egypt next month, Samuel Owusu is all but ready to justify his inclusion in the Black Stars’ setup.

Owusu’s burst of pace grips you with excitement, his sublime skills keep you on the edge of your seat. There’s an adrenaline rush anytime he has the ball tightly glued to his magical left foot.

He is a player with a special gift and finesse, speed paired with technique and skills- at just 23. With such displays, one can easily tell that the lad is destined for greatness. Such displays has always characterised the Accra born and raised boy, who had previously played for the defunct Red Bull Ghana, Vision FC, Radnik Surdulica and Genclerbirligi

“I had a very good season in the Serbian topflight where I made 32 appearances, scoring 7 and recording 10 assists, 4 MVPs and made the Team of the Week on five occasions.” He told Angel FM, Kumasi in a recent interview.

“I always knew I would one day play for the Black Stars but never expected it to happen this fast. My dream was realised when on a fateful day, I had a surprise call from the coach of the Black Stars (Kwasi Appiah) who called to tell me to press on with my exploits with my club and that I would hear from him if I am able to sustain good displays.” He gushed

Possessing searing pace, sublime dribbling abilities and strength, the FK Cukaricki attacker is a hugely challenging proposition for any defender to handle in a 1v1 situation. Indeed, being so adept in this regard has positive ramifications for his teammates too, for he regularly gets double or triple teamed, which importantly creates space for teammates to utilise.

Owusu plays a play-making role and occasionally a free-attacking role. He is comfortable attacking on either wing or through the centre of the pitch.

His quick feet allow him to keep control of the ball when dribbling at top speed, he scores, assists, all while married to a non chalant action style. When assigned a role on the flanks, He loves cutting in from the wing, taking up pockets of space between defence and midfield where he can do the most damage.

“I am able to play on either side of the wing but I am very comfortable when I am assigned to a free-attacking role. When I am allowed to dictate the pace of the game. It brings out the best in me.”

Wherever he plays for the Black Stars, he will undoubtedly create opportunities for the team whether be it from his pinpoint crossing and tricky dribbling or his superb vision and passing.

His movement is another highlight of his, using this to surge in behind with superbly timed runs, find space infield or be instrumental in creating overloads.

In addition, with Owusu being so competent at performing positional rotations and knowing how best to position himself to manufacture the aforementioned overloads, both aspects of Kwasi Appiah's philosophy, this should see him adapt rather smoothly on the pitch.

Although it will inherently take time to adjust to living in the unfamiliar confines of the team and building relationships with his new teammates, the inclusion of Samuel Owusu into the Black Stars setup is definitely one that should benefit the country, both now, and in the future.