Richmond Yiadom Boakye (born 28 January 1993) is a Ghanaian professional footballer who plays as a striker.

Richmond Boakye
Boakye with Ghana in 2015
Personal information
Full name Richmond Yiadom Boakye[1]
Date of birth (1993-01-28) 28 January 1993 (age 31)[1]
Place of birth Sunyani, Ghana
Height 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in)[2]
Position(s) Striker
Youth career
2003–2006 Bechem United
2006–2008 D.C. United (Agogo, Ghana)
2008–2011 Genoa
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2010–2013 Genoa 6 (1)
2011–2013Sassuolo (loan) 66 (21)
2013–2014 Juventus 0 (0)
2013–2014Elche (loan) 31 (6)
2014–2015 Atalanta 19 (3)
2015Roda (loan) 9 (0)
2016 Latina 33 (4)
2017 Red Star Belgrade 30 (27)
2018 Jiangsu Suning 15 (3)
2018–2020 Red Star Belgrade 33 (16)
2021 Górnik Zabrze 13 (0)
2021–2022 Beitar Jerusalem 27 (6)
2022–2023 Lamia 8 (1)
2023 Al Akhdar 6 (2)
2023 Selangor 11 (6)
International career
2010–2013 Ghana U20 10 (5)
2012–2022 Ghana 19 (7)
Medal record
Representing  Ghana
Men's Football
FIFA U-20 World Cup
Third place 2013 Turkey
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 13 November 2023

Club career

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Early career

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Born in Accra, Greater Accrai,[3] Boakye began his career with Bechem United in his native country of Ghana.[4] He eventually moved to Agogo, Asante Akim North District based club, D.C. United[5] and remained until 2008 when he was scouted by Genoa C.F.C. following a tournament in Vicenza, Italy.[6]

Genoa

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Following his transfer to Genoa in 2009, Boakye spent the 2009–10 Serie A season, playing in the Campionato Nazionale Primavera for the Ligurian club.[7] On 3 April 2010, Boakye made his Serie A debut, in a match against Livorno. He came off the bench as a substitute for David Suazo in the 13th minute and scored the opening goal, and the match ended in a 1–1 draw.[8] On 2 May, he played in his second match, replacing Giuseppe Sculli as a 71st minute substitute. In the process he played often for Genoa's Primavera side, winning the Scudetto, Coppa Italia and two Supercoppa Primavera with the Rossoblu.[9][10]

Sassuolo

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On 21 June 2011, Boakye officially joined Serie B outfit Sassuolo on a one-year loan deal[11] that proved very successful for the Ghanaian; he managed to score 12 goals in 36 appearances for the club that missed promotion to Serie A via a promotion play-off loss on aggregate to U.C. Sampdoria during the 2011–12.[12] His loan deal was extended for an extra year for the after signing for Juventus in 2012.[13] The following season, the 2012–13, he scored 11 league goals in 32 league appearances, ended as the club's joint top scorer and helped them to win the Serie B thus achieving direct promotion to Serie A and ensuring a first top-flight campaign ever in the club's history for the 2013–14 season.[12][14][15][16]

Juventus

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His performances for the Neroverde did not go unnoticed, as the player was eventually signed by reigning Serie A champions Juventus FC on a co-ownership deal from Genoa in July 2012. After joining the club, however, he returned to Sassuolo on a second season-long loan deal with the club.[13] Juventus paid nothing in cash but cancelled the transfer debt owed to Genoa with the sale of Ciro Immobile on a similar co-ownership deal in January 2012.

Boakye returned to Juventus on 30 June 2013 but was later loaned to Elche in Spain for the 2013–14 season.[17] He finished the season having scored 6 goals in 31 league appearances (12 starts) for the Spanish club, and returned again to Juventus on 30 June 2014, after the co-ownership with Genoa was renewed just ten days prior.[18]

Atalanta

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On 21 July 2014, Genoa sold half of Boakye's 50% registration rights to Atalanta[19] for €1.3 million,[20] with Juventus retained the other half. On 23 June 2015, Atalanta bought Boakye outright from Juventus for €1.6 million.[21]

On 31 August 2015, Boakye left for Dutch club Roda JC.[22]

Latina

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In January 2016, Boakye was sold to Latina in a temporary deal, with an obligation to sign outright at the end of season for an undisclosed fee.[23]

Red Star Belgrade

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In January 2017, he came on a year-and-a-half loan to a Serbian team Red Star Belgrade.[24] Boakye impressed at Red Star Belgrade with his performances based the time he spent from January to May in the club. He scored an impressive 16 goals in 19 games in all competitions, and won the best player of the week on two occasions within the Serbian Superliga.[25]

The season was marked by fierce rivalry between Red Star and Partizan and the owner of the trophy was decided only in the last round of the championship and ended up in Partizan hands, with Red Star finishing second. He made 18 appearances, spent 1375 minutes in game, and scored 16 goals. He was unable to fight for the league top scorer title as he arrived during winter break and missed the first half of the season. His great performances influenced Ghana national team coach James Kwesi Appiah to ask Boakye to join the Ghana national team as soon as he gets released by Red Star for summer holidays.[26] Boakye also became a free agent on 29 May, after the bankruptcy of Latina.[27]

Red Star Belgrade signed Boakye on a permanent deal on 27 June 2017.[28] He started the season with 5 goals in the first 3 games of qualifying matches of the club in 2017–18 UEFA Europa League.[29][30][31] He added two more goals in his fifth and sixth games of Europa League qualifying match appearances.

On 14 December 2017, he was elected by the direction board as the Red Star player of the year in 2017.[32] His performances with Red Star attracted the interest of numerous foreign teams in the winter of 2017–18. Chelsea and their coach Antonio Conte had scouted him closely over the course of the 2017–18 winter transfer window.[33]

Jiangsu Suning

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On 27 February 2018, Boakye was transferred to Jiangsu Suning for a reported 5.5 million fee.[34]

Return to Red Star Belgrade

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On 31 August 2018, Boakye signed a new 2.5-year contract with an optional one-year extension for Red Star in a 2.5 million transfer, just six months after the transfer to Jiangsu Suning.[35] He contributed to Red Star's 2018-19 UEFA Champions League campaign, as the team qualified to the group stage for the first time after 27 years. After becoming the best foreigner goalscorer in the history of the club, Boakye became the first foreigner to wear a Red Star jersey over two separate terms. On 15 September 2018, he scored a brace against Radnik Surdulica in his first match since returning to Red Star.[36] On 23 September 2018, he scored a header against Partizan in the eternal derby, which ended in a 1–1 tie.[37]

Górnik Zabrze

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On 9 February 2021, Boakye signed a short-term contract with Polish football club Górnik Zabrze until the end of the 2020–21 season on a free transfer with an option to extend.[38][39][40]

Beitar Jerusalem

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On 20 July 2021, Boakye signed for Beitar Jerusalem on a one-year contract, with an option to extend for a further one year.[41][42] He left the club at the end of this contract on 30 July 2022.

Lamia

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On 17 August 2022, Boakye has signed for Greek side Lamia on a free transfer for the new season.[43]

Al Akhdar SC

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On 22 January 2023, Boakye has completed a transfer move to Libyan side Al Akhdar SC in the ongoing January transfer window.[44] He made his debut for Al Akhdar on 3 March, in a 1–1 away draw against Al-Suqoor, playing the entire game.[45] He scored his first goal for the club on 9 March, scored a 90th-minute stoppage time equaliser during a 1–1 home draw against Saint-Éloi Lupopo in 2022–23 CAF Confederation Cup.[46]

On 27 May 2023, Boakye has terminated his contract with Al-Akhdar.[47] He made significant contributions, scoring three goals and providing two assists in 11 appearances across all competitions.[48]

Selangor

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On 28 June 2023, Boakye signed for Malaysia Super League side Selangor.[49][50] On 9 July, he made his debut for the club as a substitute to Ayron del Valle, in a 1–0 loss against Sri Pahang in the league.[51] A week later, he scored his first goal in a league match against Penang, which Selangor won 3–0.[52] Boakye scored his first hat-trick for the club against Kelantan in a massive 2–11 away victory on 25 August 2023.

International career

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Boakye received an international call-up by the Ghana national team for the friendly match against China at the Tianhe Stadium in Guangzhou on 15 August 2012.[53] Boakye scored his first goal for Ghana on his debut, an equaliser in the 80th minute of the match.[54] He also played for Ghana at the 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup, winning the bronze medal.

Personal life

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Whilst on loan playing for Elche in the La Liga in 2013, Boakye revealed that he is Real Madrid fan even though when he was growing up everyone in his family supported Manchester United and Barcelona.[55]

Career statistics

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Club

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As of match played 13 May 2023[56][57]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League Cup Continental Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Genoa 2009–10 Serie A 3 1 0 0 3 1
2010–11 4 0 1 0 5 0
Total 7 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 8 1
Sassuolo (loan) 2011–12 Serie B 34 10 2 2 36 12
2012–13 32 11 0 0 32 11
Total 66 21 2 2 0 0 0 0 68 23
Elche (loan) 2013–14 La Liga 31 6 2 1 33 7
Atalanta 2014–15 Serie A 19 3 3 2 22 5
Roda JC (loan) 2015–16 Eredivisie 9 0 1 0 10 0
Latina 2015–16 Serie B 17 1 0 0 17 1
2016–17 16 3 0 0 16 3
Total 33 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 33 4
Red Star 2016–17 Serbian SuperLiga 16 12 4 4 20 16
2017–18 14 15 0 0 14 8 28 23
30 27 4 4 14 8 0 0 48 39
Jiangsu Suning 2018 Chinese Super League 15 3 1 0 16 3
Red Star 2018–19 Serbian SuperLiga 15 13 0 0 3 0 18 13
2019–20 10 1 2 1 13 4 25 6
2020–21 8 2 2 0 3 0 13 2
Total 33 16 4 1 19 4 0 0 56 24
Górnik 2020–21 Ekstraklasa 13 0 1 0 0 0 14 0
Beitar Jerusalem 2021–22 Israeli Premier League 27 6 1 0 0 0 1 0 29 6
Lamia 2022–23 Super League Greece 8 1 1 0 0 0 9 1
Al Akhdar 2022–23 Libyan Premier League 6 2 2 0 3 1 11 3
Selangor 2023 Malaysia Super League 11 6 0 0 4 0 15 6
Career total 308 96 23 10 36 13 5 0 372 119

International

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As of match played 18 January 2022
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
Ghana 2012 3 1
2013 4 1
2015 4 2
2017 3 2
2021 2 0
2022 3 1
Total 19 7
Scores and results list Ghana's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Boakye goal.
List of international goals scored by Richmond Boakye[58]
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 15 August 2012 Shaanxi Province Stadium, Xi'an, China   China 1–1 1–1 Friendly
2 10 January 2013 Al Nahyan Stadium, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates   Egypt 2–0 3–0 Friendly
3 28 March 2015 Stade Océane, Le Havre, France   Senegal 1–2 1–2 Friendly
4 1 September 2015 Stade Municipal de Kintélé, Brazzaville, Congo   Congo 1–1 3–2 Friendly
5 1 September 2017 Stade Municipal de Kintélé, Brazzaville, Congo   Congo 1–0 5–1 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
6 5–1
7 18 January 2022 Roumdé Adjia Stadium, Garoua, Cameroon   Comoros 1–2 2–3 2021 Africa Cup of Nations

Honours

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Genoa Primavera[10]

Sas

Red Star Belgrade[59]

Ghana U20

Individual

References

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  1. ^ a b "FIFA U-20 World Cup Turkey 2013 List of Players: Ghana" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 23 June 2013. p. 10. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 June 2013.
  2. ^ "Richmond Boakye". Roda JC. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 23 October 2015.
  3. ^ "Richmond Boakye - Player Profile - Football". Eurosport. Retrieved 18 September 2020.
  4. ^ Bechem FC quits Ghana football Archived 22 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine
  5. ^ Yidom Richmond Boakye (1993/Sassuolo) – Iusport Italia
  6. ^ "Da Accra A Genova Tramite Vicenza" [From Accra To Genoa Through Vicenza] (in Italian). Genoa CFC. 27 March 2010. Archived from the original on 17 May 2012. Retrieved 4 May 2010.
  7. ^ Rosa 20 Ufficiale 20 Primavera. www.genoacfc.it. Archived 5 February 2009 at the Wayback Machine
  8. ^ "Prodigy Boakye scores in Serie A debut". Modern Ghana. Retrieved 27 March 2018.
  9. ^ "Richmond Boakye-yiadom Completes Move Juventus". News Ghana. 17 July 2012. Retrieved 26 May 2021.
  10. ^ a b "Richmond Boakye-Yiadom completes Juventus move". GhanaSoccernet. 17 July 2012. Retrieved 26 May 2021.
  11. ^ Boakye Yiadom loaned to Serie B side Sassuolo. (MTN Group) mtnfootball.com.
  12. ^ a b "Ghana - R. Boakye - Profile with news, career statistics and history - Soccerway". gh.soccerway.com. Retrieved 26 May 2021.
  13. ^ a b "Calciomercato: il Sassuolo ingaggia Boakye, ceduti Albanese e Falcinelli" [Transfer market: Sassuolo hires Boakye, assigned Albanese and Faccinelli] (in Italian). 31 August 2012. Archived from the original on 25 May 2014. Retrieved 4 September 2012.
  14. ^ "Ghana striker Boakye-Yiadom reveals he is a Real Madrid fan". Modern Ghana. Retrieved 26 May 2021.
  15. ^ "History". U.S. Sassuolo Calcio. Retrieved 26 May 2021.
  16. ^ Tejwani, Karan (20 October 2016). "How Sassuolo went from Italy's fourth tier to the Europa League in a decade". The Guardian. Retrieved 26 May 2021.
  17. ^ "Richmond Boakye, refuerzo para la delantera" [Richmond Boakye, reinforcement for the front]. Elche CF (in Spanish). elchecf.es. 28 August 2013. Archived from the original on 31 August 2013. Retrieved 28 August 2013.
  18. ^ "UFFICIALE: Tutte le operazioni di giornata della Juventus". Retrieved 19 February 2018.
  19. ^ "Tutti i trasferimenti Estate" (in Italian). Lega Serie A. 3 March 2015. Archived from the original on 17 March 2015. Retrieved 5 June 2015.
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  21. ^ "Relazione finanziaria annuale al 30 giugno 2015" (PDF (1.24MB)) (in Italian). Juventus F.C. 1 October 2015. Retrieved 11 October 2015.
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  23. ^ "Calciomercato, tutte le operazioni dell'Atalanta" (in Italian). Atalanta B.C. 1 February 2016. Archived from the original on 2 February 2016. Retrieved 28 August 2016.
  24. ^ Boakje: Zahvalan sam Bogu što mi je pružio priliku da igram za Zvezdu ("Boakye: I am thankfull to God for the opportunity to play for Red Star") at Sportski žurnal, 30 January 2017 (in Serbian)
  25. ^ Srbije, Super liga. "Igrač kola: Sjajni Ričmond Boaći sačuvao pobedu crveno-belih u derbiju kola". Super liga Srbije (in Serbian). Retrieved 25 May 2017.
  26. ^ Boaći u reprezentaciji at Sportski žurnal, 24 May 2017 (in Serbian)
  27. ^ "Fallimento Latina: i calciatori tesserati svincolati d'autorità" (in Italian). FIGC. 12 June 2017. Retrieved 18 June 2017.
  28. ^ Ричмонд Боаћи потписао! [Richmond Boakye signs!] (Press release) (in Serbian). Red Star Belgrade. 27 June 2017. Retrieved 7 July 2017.
  29. ^ "UEFA Europa League - Crvena zvezda-Floriana". UEFA. 29 June 2017. Retrieved 7 July 2017.
  30. ^ "UEFA Europa League - Floriana-Crvena zvezda". UEFA. 6 July 2017. Retrieved 7 July 2017.
  31. ^ "UEFA Europa League - Irtysh-Crvena zvezda". UEFA. 13 July 2017. Retrieved 26 July 2017.
  32. ^ Zvezda obeležila 2017. godinu i proleće u Evropi: Tu smo gde nam je mesto at Sportski žurnal, 14 December 2017 (in Serbian)
  33. ^ Richmond Boakye to Chelsea: What we know so far about Antonio Conte’s striking target at standard.co.uk, 2 January 2018, Retrieved 3 January 2018
  34. ^ "Zvanično je, pao Boaćijev potpis!" [Baokye signs for Jiangsu]. sportske.net (in Serbian). 27 February 2018. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
  35. ^ "Zvezda ponovo kupila Boaćija, parafirao na tri i po godine". Sportski žurnal (in Serbian). 31 August 2018. Retrieved 31 August 2018.
  36. ^ "KRAJ: Crvena zvezda - Radnik Surdulica 6:0! (VIDEO)". mozzartsport.com. 15 September 2018. Retrieved 15 September 2018.
  37. ^ "Partizan igrao, Zvezda preživela (VIDEO)". mozzartsport.com. 23 September 2018. Retrieved 23 September 2018.
  38. ^ Górnik Zabrze (9 February 2021). "Richmond Boakye piłkarzem Górnika!". Górnik Zabrze Spółka Akcyjna (in Polish). Retrieved 10 February 2021.
  39. ^ Teye, Prince Narkortu (9 February 2021). "Richmond Boakye: Polish club Gornik Zabrze secure services of Ghana striker | Goal.com". www.goal.com. Retrieved 10 February 2021.
  40. ^ Kwafo, Eric Nana Yaw (9 February 2021). "Ghana striker Richmond Boakye Yiadom seals move to Polish club Gornik Zabrze". Modern Ghana. Retrieved 10 February 2021.
  41. ^ Narkortu Teye, Prince (21 July 2021). "Boakye: Beitar Jerusalem snap up former Juventus striker". goal.com. Goal. Retrieved 22 July 2021.
  42. ^ Ben Ziv, Guy (20 July 2021). "בוקאי חתם בבית"ר, מו"מ מתקדם עם זריהן" (in Hebrew). ONE. Retrieved 20 July 2021.
  43. ^ "Ghana striker Richmond Boakye signs contract with Greek side PAE Lamia". ghanasoccernet.com. Ghana Soccernet. 17 August 2022. Retrieved 18 August 2022.
  44. ^ "Richmond Boakye Yiadom signs for Al Akhdar Sports Club in Libya". ghanaweb.com. Ghana Web. 22 January 2023. Retrieved 22 January 2023.
  45. ^ "Al Soqour Tobruk - Al Akhdar SC". sofascore.com. Sofascore. 3 March 2023. Retrieved 4 March 2023.
  46. ^ "Al Akhdar SC - FC Saint Eloi Lupopo". sofascore.com. Sofascore. 9 March 2023. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
  47. ^ Amoako, Yaw Opoku (27 May 2023). "Richmond Boakye Yiadom departs Al-Akhdar by mutual consent". ghanaguardian.com. Ghana Guardian. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
  48. ^ ""It was an honour" - Richmond Boakye-Yiadom bids Al Akhdar farewell". footballghana.com. Football Ghana. 27 May 2023. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
  49. ^ "Boakye-Yiadom #IsRed". selangorfc.com. Selangor FC. 28 June 2023. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
  50. ^ Abdullah, Meor (28 June 2023). "Selangor Dapatkan Khidmat Richmond Boakye-Yiadom". vocketfc.com. Vocket FC. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
  51. ^ Awang, Asrol (9 July 2023). "Gol Ingreso bantu Pahang kecewakan Selangor". bharian.com.my. Berita Harian. Retrieved 10 July 2023.
  52. ^ Rowley, Afiq (15 July 2023). "Liga Super: Ketajaman Faisal Halim Pastikan Selangor Raih 3 Mata Atasi Penang". semuanyabola.com. Semuanyabola. Retrieved 16 July 2023.
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  54. ^ "China 1–1 Ghana". ESPN. 15 August 2012. Archived from the original on 3 January 2013. Retrieved 15 August 2012.
  55. ^ "Ghana striker Boakye-Yiadom reveals he is a Real Madrid fan". GhanaSoccernet. 21 December 2013. Retrieved 26 May 2021.
  56. ^ "R. Boakye on Soccerway". Soccerway. Retrieved 3 November 2021.
  57. ^ "Richmond Boakye". Sofascore. Retrieved 14 May 2023.
  58. ^ "Boakye, Richmond". National Football Teams. Retrieved 6 September 2017.
  59. ^ Strack-Zimmermann, Benjamin. "Richmond Boakye". www.national-football-teams.com. Retrieved 26 May 2021.
  60. ^ FIFA U-20 World Cup Turkey at FIFA.com, Retrieved 30 January 2017
  61. ^ Srbije, Super liga. "Igrač kola: Sjajni Ričmond Boaći sačuvao pobedu crveno-belih u derbiju kola". Super liga Srbije (in Serbian). Retrieved 26 May 2021.
  62. ^ Srbije, Super liga. "Igrač kola: Het-trik Ričmonda Boaćija za oproštaj crveno-belih od titule". Super liga Srbije (in Serbian). Retrieved 26 May 2021.
  63. ^ Srbije, Super liga. "Igrač kola: Sjajni Ričmond Boaći napunio mrežu građevinara". Super liga Srbije (in Serbian). Retrieved 26 May 2021.
  64. ^ Srbije, Super liga. "Igrač kola: Dva pogotka Ričmonda Boaćija za tri boda i vrh liste strelaca". Super liga Srbije (in Serbian). Retrieved 26 May 2021.
  65. ^ Daniel, Yeboah (3 March 2018). "Richmond Boakye Yiadom adjudged Best Player in Serbia". 3news. Retrieved 26 May 2021.
  66. ^ "China-bound Richmond Boakye wins prestigious "Novosti" Serbian Super Liga Best Player award". GhanaSoccernet. 3 March 2018. Retrieved 26 May 2021.
  67. ^ "Richmond Boakye-Yiadom dedicates his Red Star Player of The Year award to teammates". The Ghana Guardian News. Retrieved 26 May 2021.
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