Swansea sign Ghana forward Andre Ayew on free transfer from Marseille

Posted Thursday, June 11, 2015 by theguardian.com

The Ghana forward Andre Ayew has joined Swansea on a four-year deal, subject to international clearance.

The 25-year-old was out of contract at Marseille and he will now join the Premier League club who have been looking to strengthen their forward options since Wilfried Bony was sold to Manchester City in January. The deal was confirmed on Swansea’s website.

Ayew, who was on target against the United States and Germany at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, has won more than 60 caps for Ghana and had scored 52 goals in 181 games for Marseille since making his debut in 2007.

''I looked left and right and I thought Swansea was the best choice for me to grow as player,” Ayew told Sky Sports.

''Not only football-wise but I heard about the squad, how the players live together and the team spirit. So I thought it was great to come to Swansea because I know how positive it is here.

''I’m going to do everything to be ready to adapt but I’m lucky because I’ve played against a lot of English players in the Champions League.

''I’ll have a pre-season to get ready before the season starts, so I’ll have time to adapt.”

Ayew has often been linked with a transfer to the Premier League in the past and said he had spoken to his international colleagues about making the move.

''I’ve spoken a lot to players from Ghana who have played in the Premier League,” Ayew said. “They heard I was going to come but they didn’t know where.

''It’s a league I really like and they knew I was going to come to England, but I took my time to make a decision.

''When I spoke to them all, the Ghanaians love the Premiership and Asamoah Gyan, Michael Essien and Sulley Muntari all said the same thing.

''I think it’s the best league and I wanted to come and play against the best players.”