Manager Brian Barry-Murphy on Yeboah Amankwah who has joined Dale on a season-long loan from Manchester City…
“I’m over the moon to bring him to our club,” said the Boss.
“I have known Yeboah personally over a period of time, so I’ve had a keen interest in how his career has progressed. He is at a point now where he is ready for league football.
“Yeboah’s upbringing has been different to that of other Academy graduates. He was in at Crystal Palace but left them at an early stage and has come from independent football in South London and has battled his way back into professional football. Those qualities are distinct qualities of what he is. He is a real tough individual who is determined to get to the very top of the game, and his pathway is symbolic of that. He is someone who gives us something completely different in that area of the pitch. When we bring someone in, we want them to enhance the squad and he definitely does that.
“We were caught short a lot of times last year in the particular area of the pitch, so he is a key addition for us. From last year’s experiences, this year’s fixture list is going to be even more congested.”
He continued: “The key feedback from the parent clubs last season was the loan experience for their players was so positive. The key thing for us to appreciate is that while a lot of those experiences were great, some of them were difficult and it was our understanding of those difficult moments and our forgiveness of those players that really enhanced their learning, and I’m thinking in particular of Robert Sanchez who, from his parent club’s perspective, had a brilliant loan spell, but there were plenty of mistakes in there. But as a Club we’re a very forgiving club, and I include the supporters in that, who always show a forgiving nature towards the players, especially the young players which gives them that confidence to really express themselves.
“We all see the end result of Luke [Matheson] going to Wolves, but the key part of Wolves’ feedback of why they were so happy with his development was that they saw him give away a penalty at Wycombe, as well as him giving away a penalty against AFC Wimbledon in the previous season and make numerous mistakes which at times can cost you games and goals. But he learned from those experiences and that’s a key part of those young players’ development. The overriding feedback from the clubs is that our reaction to player setbacks has been a very positive part or their learning and development.”
BBM added: “Our environment is set up to welcome guys like Yeboah. Man City’s thought process is that they couldn’t put him into a better group, and by group I mean Paul McShane, Jim McNulty and Eoghan O’Connell, because they specifically look at the areas of the pitch where he is going to spending his time, who he is going to be learning from and who he is going to be competing against.
“When it comes down to it, Yeboah is an ambitious guy who wants to play, so he’ll have to get in ahead of those guys. But what we don’t have is those guys trying to supress him – they want to encourage him, they want him to challenge and they want him to be the best that he can be. They want these guys to reach the highest level of their career, so they want to be part of their journey. So, they’ll provide Yeboah the perfect setting for him to begin his professional journey in terms of league football.
“The same as Gavin [Bazunu], he’s a very, very young player so there are going to be periods this season when things are difficult for him and he makes mistakes, but that’s just part of the learning, as is how he reacts to that, and how we encourage him and make it ok to make mistakes.”