Sporting Lisbon to sign Fatawu Issahaku in straight deal after Liverpool links
The deal worth about 1.2 million euros in transfer fees can only be activated when Fatawu turns 18 in March 2022. He is, however, expected to travel to Portugal in January to begin his integration into the club.
Portuguese champions, Sporting CP eventually won the race to sign young attacking Ghana midfielder Abdul Fatawu Issahaku, Footy-Ghana.com has confirmed.
A straight long-term agreement was struck between the Lisbon-based club and the teen sensation’s representatives earlier this month.
The deal worth about 1.2 million euros in transfer fees can only be activated when Fatawu turns 18 in March 2022. He is, however, expected to join Sporting in January to begin his integration into the club.
In late May, Fatawu – in the company of Steadfast FC CEO Alhaji Abubakari Abdul-Diam and Spain-based Nigerian agent Peter Obiora Ejiasi as advisor – travelled to Germany looking all set to join Bayern Leverkusen.
But the Bundesliga side pulled out of signing the 17-year-old due to “dubious and disrespectful behaviour” on the part of his advisor, German tabloid Kicker claimed.
Widespread reports later claimed that English giants Liverpool FC had signed him and were farming Fatawu Issahaku out due to his age. However, our sources indicate both clubs were in the race separately.
“Sporting Lisbon have a pre-contract to sign Fatawu,” a Footy-Ghana.com source emphatically said.
“Liverpool have no hand in it. They pulled out in the course of negotiations and [Sporting] Lisbon showed up.
“Liverpool wanted to sign and loan him to an Austrian club for two seasons but some demands forced them to pull out.
“Bayern Munich and Dortmund also showed up at the eleventh hour but were put off by the demands.”
Further transfer hint
Somewhere last week the bankroller of Fatawu’s club Steadfast FC, Hon. Haruna Iddrisu a leader in Ghana’s Parliament, confirmed the sale of his prized asset during the vetting of a Deputy Minister for Sports in the country.
“When I started negotiation for Abdul Issahaku Fatawu’s move abroad, it started from more than 1 million euros and this means if we get corporate sponsorships, we can do better,” the MP said while commenting on the need to invest in football.
The rising star
UCL winner Hakim Ziyech with the Rising Star 💫 pic.twitter.com/mYb5MC9sSl
— Issahaku Abdul Fatawu (@IssahakuAbdulF5) June 10, 2021
Fatawu Issahaku has enjoyed a meteoric rise in his career over the past year featuring for the Ghana U-17s, U-20s and the senior national team, the Black Stars.
The exciting versatile midfielder captained the Black Starlets at the U-17 Wafu Cup of Nations tournament in January and was quickly drafted into the U-20 squad after the team’s group-stage elimination.
He went on to win the player of the tournament award after dazzling displays for Ghana’s title-winning squad at the 2021 Under-20 Africa Cup of Nations finals in Mauritania.
The left-footed player scored twice for the Satellites enroute to winning Ghana’s fourth title, but it was his artistry of the ball and efficiency in Ghana’s attacking flow, coupled with his dead-ball mastery that caught the eye of the Technical Study Group (TSG) which crowned him best.
Upon returning from the U-20 Afcon, Fatawu was drafted into the Ghana senior national team during the international break. He featured and scored a trademark free-kick for the ‘B’ team in an international friendly with Uzbekistan.
Fatawu earned a call-up to the Black Stars for the June friendlies but was unused in both games against Morocco and Cote d’Ivoire.
