Ghana prospect, Jesurun Rak-Sakyi made his competitive Crystal Palace debut against former club Chelsea on the opening day of the 2021/22 Premier League Saturday afternoon.
The 18-year-old attacker – who was released by the European champions just two years ago – earned 15 minutes on the pitch.
Rak-Sakyi replaced Jairo Riedewald as the Eagles were spanked 3-0 at Stamford Bridge.
Two other Ghana internationals – Jordan Ayew and Jeffrey Schlupp were handed starting berths by new Palace manager Patrick Vieira. Ayew played full throttle while Schlupp enjoyed 55 minutes of game time.
Vieira comments
Discussing the 18-year-old, Vieira said: “He’s a kid who spent pre-season with us and I was really pleased with what he’s been doing on the field. He’s a really lovely kid and when he came on at 3-0 I just wanted him to get on the ball.
“He’s a good dribbler, can score goals as well so I wanted him to be a bit higher on the field, but he spent most of the time behind the ball defending. The quality of Chelsea made it really difficult for us to get on the ball. He’s a young, talented player and we have to work with him to try to help him.”
