Afriyie Acquah is a professional Ghanaian footballer. He plays for the Turkish club Yeni Malatyaspor as a midfielder and the Ghanaian national team.

He was born in Accra Ghana and began training as a footballer at Glentoran Football Academy, located in Sunyani. Th academy was established by Christopher Forsythe, an Irish National from Sunyani. He was awarded the best Ghanaian midfielder's Under-14 while training in the academy.

Afriyie was then transferred to Bechem United because the Northern Irish club he was with, was unable to sign him due to work permit issues. Although he was still under the care of Christopher Forsythe who took him to Belfast to train. In April 2009, he played for Bechem United against Italian club Empoli.

He moved to Turkey in 2010 with his brother and learned Italian from a private tutor.

He plays the number 94 in honor and dedication to his mother who survived a car accident in 1994.

On 1 February 2010, Palermo signed Acquah from D.C. United of Ghana for free. A fine of €500,000 agent fee was paid to SCMG Sports Consulting & Management GmbH due to the third-party ownership rule in 2012.

FIGC found that Acquah had signed a contract with the agent in June 2009 as he was unable to join any club abroad until he turned 18.

Afriyie Acquah made his Palermo debut in the 32nd minute, in a 4-2 loss against Fiorentina on 13 February 2011 as a substitute for Giulio Migliaccio. He then signed a five-year deal till 2016.

On 16 July 2012, he was loaned by Palermo to Serie A rivals Parma for €100,000. The agreement also includes an option for Parma to acquire half of the player's transfer rights by the end of the season.

He moved back to German Bundesliga club Hoffenheim in January 2013, for a €2.5 million fee on a four-year but did not play till the end of the 2012-13 season.

He returned to Parma in July 2013 and finished 27 league appearances in the 2013–14 season. He then scored the first professional goal of his career in a 4-2 loss against Roma on 2 April 2014. The loan was then extended to a year.

Afryie's loan to Parma was terminated in February 2018 and he moved to fellow Serie A side Sampdoria while still on loan. He made his Sampdoria debut, playing 90 minutes, in a 2–1 loss against Chievo.

On 19 June 2015, he was signed by Torino on a four-year contract.

On 17 August 2018, Acquah signed with Serie A team Empoli.

Career

He made his Ghana debut against Chile on 29 February 2012 at the PPL Park in Chester, Pennsylvania, USA. He also scored a goal against Malawi on October 13 2012 in the Civo Stadium, Lilongwe.

Acquah was named in a provisional 26-man squad in the FIFA World Cup by Ghana manager James Kwesi Appiah in May 2014. He was also selected as part of Ghana's squad for the 2014 tournament. He made his debut in the World Cup as a substitute for Mohammed Rabiu in the 76th minute. It was a 2–1 loss against Portugal.

Honors

Africa Cup of Nations runner-up: 2015

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