Scout Report – Daniel Opare
It looks like Everton, West Ham and Swansea are set to battle it out or Augsburg right-back Daniel Opare in the January transfer window.
According to the Sun, Augsburg are ready to cash in on their prized asset in January as they could lose him on a free transfer in the summer. Apart from a host of Premier League clubs, there is strong interest right from Italian giants AC Milan and La Liga’s Sevilla.
With Opare set to be a hot prospect in the winter transfer window, let’s take a closer look at Opare’s profile.
Origin
Born on 18 October 1990 in Accra, Ghana, Opare started his career with Ashanti Gold in his native. He was recognised by World Soccer as one of the “50 Most Exciting Teenagers on the Planet” and received fantastic reviews for the Ghana national under-17 team at the 2007 U-17 World Cup.
Opare had two seasons with Real Madrid B before enjoying a four-year spell with Standard Liege. Just before the 2014 World Cup, the defender signed for Porto. He spent the following season on loan at Besiktas and following that, the Ghanaian signed a three-year contract with German club FC Augsburg.
Opare also won the FIFA U-20 World Cup with Ghana in 2009. He played with the Under 17s, Under 20s and just three weeks after his 17th birthday, he received his first senior call-up from then Ghana’s coach, Claude Le Roy, for a friendly against Togo.
What Does He Offer?
A converted midfielder, Opare caught everyone’s eyes with his surging runs and pin-point crosses from wide areas in the 2007 FIFA U-17 World Cup.
The Ghanaian is a very solid right-back and boasts of a very strong skill set which includes dribbling and tackling. He can play on either flank and can also step in as an emergency centre-back. Opare also contributes to the attack whenever he can and is quite strong in the air as well, though he is only 5ft 8inches tall.
The right-back boasts of a never-ending engine and is quite adept at holding on to the ball and is good when it comes to building possession. The player’s focus is another asset of his. His concentration almost never wavers, making him a defender who’d give his all throughout the game.
However, injury issues and loss of form have hampered Opare’s career and that has seen him fail to take his game to another level. After roughly three years of absence, Opare played his first game for Ghana and excessively impressed on his return in October 2017.
What Does The Future Hold?
Opare has made 12 appearances this season and got a call back to the national side following his awesome form for Augsburg this season in the Bundesliga.
It is believed Augsburg have failed in their attempts to keep hold of the player after talks about a new contract broke down. The Bundesliga club has been so far unable to reach any kind of agreement with the player. This has left them with the possibilities of either losing the player for free over the summer or selling him on a cut-price deal in January.
Valued at just £2.5million, Augsburg can take the risk of keeping Opare post-January and then lose him for free. If the club is ready to sell him, expect a lot of clubs to attempt to sign this Ghana international.