Antoine Semenyo’s career is a nod to the storied virtue of perseverance as the London-born Ghana international almost gave up on football because the academies of London clubs Arsenal, Spurs, Crystal Palace and Millwall would not even look at him.
Father-figure Dave Hockaday took a chance on him and got him enrolled in a college, where he continued blooming while he steadied. The message the London clubs were tacitly expatiating was that he had to go elsewhere outside London; and that he should try lower-tiered clubs.
In 2017 he signed for Bristol City’s academy, and having proven his mettle with several loan spells at lower-tier clubs, he became an established starter for The Robinsin 2020/2021 of the Championship, scoring against Exeter City and Northampton Town in the EFL and ending 2020/2021 with five goals and seven assists, winning the Cider Army’s Yong Player of the Year award in the off-season.
With his mojo in full swing,he looked intently forward to the 2021/2022 Championship and ended the season with eight goals and twelve assists. He was Championship Player of the Month for the month of January, becoming the subject of interest from Southampton, Crystal Palace and Bournemouth, who had two bids rejected at the January transfer window and at the end of the season.
Semenyo had by the beginning of 2022/2023, gained supreme confidence and poise in the Championship, making him ripe for the Premiership. He scored early in the EFL Cup against Wycombe Wanderers and scored in three consecutive Championship games in January.
During the January transfer window, Bournemouth’s 10-million-pound bid was accepted and he made the detour to the south coast club. He was now a Premier League player, and it was a wise choice as he was assured of a regular starting slot with the Cherries.
At the Cherries, his partnership with Justin Kluivert and Dominic Solanke was legendary; by the time the former Liverpool striker left for the Tottenham Hotspurs Stadium, they had made the Cherries a club that everyone thought would struggle to stay up season after season into an established Premier League club.
The shameful Anfield incident in which a fan racially abused him when Bournemouth came to Anfield in August made champions Liverpool determined to sign him in the January transfer window, but the Reds poor season left him with no choice but to take the huge gamble of signing for City.
Liverpool as a city has a bad reputation with the infamous John Barnes banana peel incident and the controversial El Hadji Diouf incident, in which the Senegalese international, who had swapped Anfield for the Reebok Stadium a few seasons earlier, alleged that he was pelted with bananas throughout a game between Bolton Wanderers and Everton at Goodison Park.
With Liverpool, he would have been assured of a starting place with Alexander Isak a long-term injury doubt and people feel that would have been a wiser choice.
At any rate, Semenyo opted for the Etihad and completed a 64-million-pound transfer in January.
He has started five games and scored four goals so far for City.
On whether his joining City instead of Liverpool will prove to be a prudent decision is often debated by connoisseurs, especially his home country Ghana with whom he hopes to play with in this year’s World Cup.
Liverpool wanted him to atone for the racist incident at Anfield in August.
He actually hopes to score against England (the country of his birth) with whom the Black Stars are paired with in the group stages.
Will Semenyo shine in the north of England?
That is the question.
Lest I forget.
His life is a nod to perseverance.
