Citi Sports Daniel Koranteng looks at the 28 year old’s positional evolution and discusses why his return and potential partnership with his brother Jordan could be exactly what Swansea needs in their quest for survival.

Ayew’s positional change

On 6 November, 2010 a year after leading Ghana to U-20 World Cup glory, Andre Ayew made his UEFA Champions League debut for Marseille against Portuguese champions Porto at the Estádio do Dragão, playing on the left wing in place of Dutch winger Bolo Zenden. The then 20 year old played 77 minutes before being substituted out as Marseille were defeated 2–1.

Ayew earned praise from the media and many pundits especially for keeping in form Porto right back José Bosingwa quiet on the night. Ayew went on to cement himself as a regular in the side making 37 appearances in his debut season. Although he was deployed in the wider positions in his first season, Ayew showed his good eye for goal and incredible movement in the box scoring 11 goals in his debut season.

This prompted then Marseille manager Didier Dechamps to grant the Ghana international more positional freedom which resulted in Ayew scoring 30 goals for the side in the next 3 seasons. Perhaps Ayew’s best season for the French side came in his final season where he was part of a powerful front 3 along with Dimitri Payet and Andre Pierre Gignac. He finished the season as the clubs second highest goal scorer with 9 goals, featuring as the team’s main central attacking threat on some occasions in the absence of Gignac.

The winger was slowly beginning to evolve into an out and out forward. Ayew’s move to Swansea in 2015 was marked the death of his career as a winger. Then Swansea manager Gary Monk operated him as a second striker, partnering up with Frenchman Bafetimbi Gomis in the Swansea attack. He excelled in that role and finished the campaign as the team’s highest scorer with 12 goals, which included strikes against Manchester United and Chelsea.

Ayew had slowly morphed into a central attacking menace. After his move to West Ham the following season, Hammers boss Slaven Bilic reverted to deploying him down the wings and this backfired with Ayew failing to deliver. He was no longer that quick, energetic teenager who burst onto the global scene some six years before. Ayew later that season – after the AFCON – was deployed in a center forward position and he returned with an impressive 6 goals and 3 assists in just 16 starts.

Swansea’s lack

Swansea have a clear problem this season and that is their inability to score enough goals. The Swans have managed just 20 goals all season; meaning Tottenham’s Harry Kane has managed more goals than the entire Swansea side this season. Swansea have lacked a focal point in their attack this season with early season injuries to Tammy Abraham and Wilfred Bony.  Andre’s brother, Jordan, who is Swansea’s leading scorer so far this season with 8 goals, has shown that he isn’t your typical penalty box forward as the heat map of his average movement this season show he is hardly ever in the opposition box.

Andre Ayew is a second striker and poacher of the first order. The purchase of Andre means Swansea will have a player who will be a constant threat in the opposition box due to his incredible movement and exceptional anticipation and finishing ability. Andre playing as a poacher alongside his workaholic younger brother Jordan is a match made in heaven and exactly what Swansea needs.

Their devastating partnership can be likened to Manchester United’s attacking duo of 2005/2006 which had Wayne Rooney doing all the dirty work by drawing defenders away and Ruud van Nistelrooy as the prolific poacher whose simple job was just to finish off chances.

The added bonus for the Swans is that they have signed a player who understands the situation the club is in, having been in a similar pickle before with the same club, coupled with the fact that the team is peaking at a perfect time with the team unbeaten in their last five league games, which have come with successive wins against Liverpool and Arsenal.

Only positives can be seen in Swansea’s purchase of Andre Ayew and it’s very clear he, alongside Jordan are destined to save the Welsh side from the drop.

By: Daniel Koranteng/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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Ayew has returned to the Liberty Stadium on a three-and-a-half-year contract after the Swans agreed a club-record deal with West Ham United.

And the man who finished as top scorer in one his one previous season as a Swan is determined to ensure Carlos Carvalhal’s team pull clear of relegation danger.

“I am very happy to be back,” Ayew declared.

“Things have changed at the club, but the faces are still the same and I am happy to see everyone. Now I need to do the job.

“What’s important is that we keep the club up.

“The club have shown a lot of trust in me and a lot of determination to bring me in.

“Now I need to give back to them on the field. My goal and my challenge is to do everything possible to help the club stay up – the same as it is for all the players and the staff.

“That’s what I am here for and I will do everything I can to make sure it happens.”

Having climbed out of the Premier League relegation zone courtesy of Tuesday’s sparkling win over Arsenal, the Swans dropped back into the bottom three after Stoke and Southampton picked up points on Wednesday.

But Ayew has been encouraged by his new club’s form since Carvalhal took charge at the end of December.

In eight games under the Portuguese, the Swans have been beaten only once – and that was in contentious circumstances against Spurs.

“The season is going to be long and there will be a lot of tough games,” Ayew added.

“It’s not going to be easy – everyone wants to stay up and when you look at the table, 20th place to ninth or 10th is very, very tight.

“But when you know the players who are here you know the quality they have.

“Sometimes in football you can have some bad results, but I think we have the quality of players to play in the Premier League.

“We want to stay at this level and we need to do everything possible to make sure we don’t let the city down and we don’t let the fans down.”

Ayew had options to consider when it became apparent he could be leaving West Ham during the January transfer window, but he was always keen to return to Wales.

“I had a great moment at the club last time,” he said.

“I had a great feeling with my team-mates and a great relationship with the fans.

“I had a few others to look at, but when the opportunity to come back to Swansea came up, I wanted to take it.

“I felt the fans wanted me back, the chairman wanted me back and the gaffer wanted me, so I am really pleased.”

Source: Swanseacity.com

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Ayew has put pen to paper on a three-and-a-half-year contract at the Liberty Stadium after the Swans agreed an undisclosed fee with the Hammers.

The 28-year-old forward returns to Wales having left the Swans to join West Ham for £20.5 million almost 18 months ago.

His arrival is a major boost for boss Carlos Carvalhal, who has been looking to strengthen his forward line throughout the January transfer window.

Ayew is a proven Premier League player who finished as the Swans’ 12-goal leading scorer in his one previous season at the club.

The Ghana international, the older brother of Swans frontman Jordan, first moved to SA1 from Marseille in the summer of 2015 on a free transfer.

He immediately settled into the English game, scoring in his first two Swans appearances, and was an influential part of the team which overcame a difficult first half of the season to finish in mid-table.

Ayew’s contribution – his 12 goals came in 35 appearances – persuaded West Ham to spend big to take him to East London in August 2016.

He heads back to the Liberty having scored 12 goals in 50 West Ham appearances, 31 of which were starts.

The versatile forward will wear the No. 19 shirt in his second stint as a Swan.
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Source: Swansea City FC

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Hammers boss David Moyes has reportedly placed the Ghana international on the transfer list and is in advanced talks to sign Pelle as a replacement.

Ayew’s former side Swansea and Turkish side Galatasaray are among the clubs interested in his signature, with Swansea having a £14m bid rejected last week.

A move away from the London stadium seems imminent as he was left out of the West Ham match day squad that lost at Wigan at the weekend.

The 28 year old has failed to live up to his then club record £20m price tag since joining from Swansea in 2016.

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By: Daniel Koranteng/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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Swansea had a £14m bid for the Ghana international rejected by the Hammers on Sunday and are reportedly planning an improved offer.

West Ham boss David Moyes is open to let Ayew leave if his £20m valuation is met.

However, according to Sky Sports, Ayew is not keen on a move back to the Swans as he feels he can secure a move to a bigger club.

Turkish club, Galatasaray, has also recently expressed interest in the 28 year old.

The West Ham man has scored six goals and made another two from 24 appearances this season across all competitions.

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By: Daniel Koranteng/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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According to Sky Sports, the Hammers value Ayew at £20m and will not budge into selling him below their asking price.

Ayew joined West Ham from Swansea back in 2016 for £20m but has struggled to hit the ground running at the London club.

The 28-year-old has been deemed surplus to requirements at West Ham and manager David Moyes is reportedly open to offloading the Ghanaian international.

Swansea are expected to make an improved bid in the coming days.

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By: Daniel Koranteng/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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Ayew scored for the fourth time in his last seven games to set the Swans on the path to the fourth round.

The Ghanaian’s 11th-minute strike was a memorable one, as he danced past a number of Wolves defenders before beating keeper Will Norris.

The visitors levelled through Diogo Jota midway through the second half, but Wilfried Bony quickly responded to seal a 2-1 win.

And Carvalhal was full of praise for Ayew after his memorable contribution.

“I am very happy because Jordan deserves it,” said the Swans boss.

“He scored against Newcastle and again tonight. I am happy because he is a fighter – he works very hard for the team.

“He ran a lot tonight, even at the end when he was tired I think.

“I like players like that – who have quality but first of all they think of the team. I am very happy to see him score a goal like that.”

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Source: Swansea City

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The brothers missed Ghana’s trip to Congo Brazzaville in the last round due to injury and ill health.

Kwesi Appiah gave first-time call-ups to Hearts of Oak’s Vincent Atinga and Inter Allies’ Isaac Twum, who was the Best Player of the just-ended WAFU Cup of Nations and three other players: Kingsley Sarfo of Swedish side Malmo, USA-based Abass Mohammed and Kasim Nuhu of Swiss club Young Boys.

Captain Asamoah Gyan retained his place in the team while Thomas Partey also gets a return to the team.

Defender Daniel Opare’s good start to the Bundesliga season for Augsburg earned him a place in the team for the first time in three years.

Egypt-based John Antwi has also been given a call-up.

The squad will be reduced to 23 players during its preparations for the match against Uganda.

GOALKEEPERS: Richard Ofori (Martizburg, South Africa), Lawrence Ati (Sochaux, France), Joseph Addo (Aduana Stars)

DEFENDERS: Defenders : Harrison Afful (Columbus,USA), Daniel Opare (Augsburg, Germany) Agbenyenu Lumor (Portimonese, Portugal), Abass Mohammed (Harrisburg City, USA), Kasim Nuhu (Young Boys, Switzerland),  Daniel Amartey (Leicester,England), Jonathan Mensah (Columbus Crew,USA), Nicholas Opoku (Club Africain, Tunisia), Vincent Atinga (Hearts of Oak)

MIDFIELDERS: Thomas Partey (Atletico Madrid, Spain), Joseph Attamah (Bakaksehir, Turkey), Christian Atsu (Newcastle United, England), Kingsley Sarfo (Malmo, Sweden) Alfred Duncan (Sassuolo FC, Italy), Ebenezer Ofori (Stuttgart, Germany), Thomas Agyepong (NAC Breda, Holland), Frank Acheampong (Tianjin TEDA, China), Isaac Twum (Inter Allies), Patrick Twumasi (Astana FC, Kazakhtan)

FORWARDS: Asamoah Gyan (Kayerispor, Turkey), Raphael Dwamena (FC Zurich, Switzerland), John Antwi (Misr Lel-Makkasa, Egypt), Richmond Boakye Yiadom (Crvena Zvezda, Serbia)

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By: Citi Sports

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The Black Stars have lost considerable ground on rivals Egypt in Group E with just a point from their opening two games, but still have an outside chance of qualifying for the tournament provided they win all their remaining games and results elsewhere go their way.

Ayew says the players fully understand what is expected of them and will go all out on Friday.

“We need the points not only for the fans but for ourselves too. We cannot have any other result but a win or we can say we are out of the World Cup,” he said.

“We are expecting a win, and we are going to make sure we get it for the nation and the fans. We are going to make sure we win the next two games.”

Ghana will travel to Brazzaville for the return fixture on September 5.

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By: Daniel Koranteng/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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The Hammers finished 11th in last season’s premier league following a strenuous move into the London Stadium.

West Ham has made a couple of purchases including Javier Hernandez ‘Chicharito’ and Marko Arnautovic who joined for a club record fee of £25 million.

These purchases made by the club means that there will be very tough competition for a place in the starting XI when the new season begins, with Manuel Lazini, Bojan Krkic and Dede Ayew himself fighting for positions.

Ayew believes that it is good for the club to have these great players.

“The ultimate aim for these signings is to take West Ham to another level”.

“It’s good and I’m happy to see these good players coming in”, Ayew told the club’s official website.

He continued: “I feel like we are going to be capable of doing great things but we need to stay humble, work hard and not think that we have done it before time”

Andre Ayew joined the Hammers from Swansea for £20 million in the summer of 2016.

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By: Rita Mensah/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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