Fulham have been one of the busiest clubs this summer, with three new members of the first-team squad already acquired. Having bolstered his backline with the arrival Fernando Amorebieta and Maarten Stekelenburg, Martin Jol has also increased his options in central midfield by snapping up Derek Boateng from Ukrainian outfit Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk.
The tough-tackling 30-year-old makes his way to Craven Cottage on a one-year contract with the option of a further year and will brings plenty of top-level experience to the Fulham midfield. A long-term target of Jol’s, Boateng spoke of his delight at clinching the deal late last month:
“I’m very happy that I have signed and I want to thank the Chairman, the Manager and the Board at Fulham Football Club. I’ve been working hard to come here and I’ll do my best for the Club. It’s been a long road for me but now I’m here I’m so happy and I can’t wait to start and give everything I have.”
The History
The Ghana international has plenty of experience across a number of leagues in Europe. Starting his career as a 16-year-old with Greek side Kalamata FC, Boateng scored nine times in 27 appearances and was subsequently picked up Panathinaikos in 2001. There, he notched three times in 24 league games but was farmed out on loan to OFI Crete the following year, scoring once in 12 matches.
Boateng was then transferred to Swedish side AIK in 2003, scoring five goals over three seasons, before continuing on his travels yet again – this time moving to Beitar Jerusalem in Israel. There, he lasted another couple of years, helping his side win the league for the first time in 10 seasons and scoring eight times in 72 appearances, before moving to Germany with FC Cologne.
Having failed to nail down a starting berth, the nomadic Boateng then switched to Spain to star for Getafe for two seasons – he grabbed two goals and a pair of assists over 72 league games, though his penchant for incurring the referee’s wrath is reflected in 20 yellow cards over his time in La Liga. Picked up by Dnipro 2011, he scored twice in 23 league games before Jol came calling last month. Boateng has also featured 46 times for his national side and found the net once.
The Prospects
Given the number of midfield departures already this summer, Boateng looks likely to be a first-team regular for Fulham next time round. Jol has so far released Chris Baird, Giorgos Karagounis, Simon Davies and Mahamadou Diarra, while loan signing Emmanuel Frimpong and Urby Emanuelson have returned to their parent clubs. Given that Steve Sidwell hardly covered himself in glory with back to back suspensions which forced him out of seven of the last eight league matches in 2012/13, a central midfield overhaul looks on the cards.
In all likelihood, Boateng’s more defensive-midfield role and previous scoring record won’t be winning many suitors in the Fantasy Premier League (FPL) game, despite the fact he’s expected to come in around the 5.0 mark. As Jol looks for a more creative presence alongside the Ghanaian, Sidwell’s starting berth looks under threat and while Bryan Ruiz was occasionally moved to a more withdrawn role last term, Jol is likely to return to the market again and allow the Costa Rican to continue behind Dimitar Berbatov in a 4-4-1-1.
Depending on price, Boateng could, however, prove a decent value shout in the Sky Sports game. The bonus aspect, which rewards passing and tackling, could bolster his appeal, with the Ghanaian tasked with sitting in front of the back-four as Jol looks for a little more resilience in the centre of the park. Plenty of starts looks assured, then, but from an FPL perspective, he’d need to surpass his previous exploits to force himself onto our Fantasy radars.
