‘I grew up with Mohamed Kudus & Adingra in the academy’: Keanin Ayer
SuperSport United midfielder Keanin Ayer has opened up on his time at the Right to Dream academy in Ghana where he mingled with West Ham star Mohamed Kudus and Brighton & Hove Albion winger Simon Adingra.
Born in Boksburg but raised in Eldorado Park, Ayer underwent trials at Right to Dream in 2011 and 2012 before joining the academy in 2013 at the age of 13.
He highlighted that leaving South Africa for Ghana at a young age made him a stronger and more open-minded person, as he had to navigate challenges independently with his family not around.
He was the only one from outside West Africa in the academy with all players coming from that region.
KEANIN AYER REFLECTS ON LIFE AT RIGHT TO DREAM ACADEMY IN GHANA
“They came to scout this side and I went there for a month, I came back home, then went in 2012, came back and they signed me in 2013,” said Ayer in an interview with FARPost.
“You have everything there, school, training [facilties] and there’s like a lot of players, like 100 or a bit more in different age groups.
“It’s not like players from Ghana [only], all players from West Africa and I was the only one from outside West Africa.
“It’s really competitive because everyone wants to get 18 and be the first to sign for this team or that team. It’s competitive but we’re a family because you don’t have your family with you, living in three big houses.
“Close to 25 players in one room, so you’re always close together. But everything is good at the camp, there are character classes where you learn about life and what you should do.
“If grew up in Eldos it would be much different, my head wouldn’t be open as it is now. I learnt a lot of things, moving away from home at that age because it’s hard.
“You don’t have a mom here, you learn to do things yourself.”
The 24-year-old believes that Ghana takes a more serious approach to football development compared to South Africa.
He highlighted the character classes offered at Right to Dream as a crucial element missing from many South African academies.
“Maybe they take it more seriously, but that doesn’t mean we don’t take it seriously, we are but not on that level,” he continued.
“That’s because I don’t think there’s any academy that has character classes in SA. That’s the most important because we would produce many players.”
PLAYING WITH KUDUS AND ADINGRA
Ayer revealed that he played alongside Mohamed Kudus and Simon Adingra, who have gone on to succeed in the English Premier League. Both players were key contributors to their national teams at the Africa Cup of Nations in Ivory Coast.
Adingra scooped the Young Player of the Tournament award after playing a significant role as the Elephants won the competition.
“There’s a lot of players that [came out of that academy] but ones I played with is Mohamed Kudus, playing at West Ham, Simon Adingra, now at Brighton [and Hove Albion],” Keanin Ayer added.
“And there’s like a lot of guys playing in Belgium. It’s like when you turn 18, you’re most likely to get a team.”
Ayer left Right to Dream in 2018 when he was scouted by the Swedish club Varbergs BoIS FC where he made 68 appearances, scoring three goals and registering five assists. In 2022, he moved to the Norwegian outfit Sandefjord Fotball where he played 46 matches, scoring on five occasions and providing one assist.
He then had a brief spell with Danish club Næstved Boldklub before making a move to SuperSport, returning to South Africa after more than a decade.
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