Daniel Afriyie Barnieh seals move to Swiss side FC Zurich
Accra Hearts of Oak forward Daniel Afriyie Barnieh has been spotted in the jersey of his new Swiss club FC Zurich for the first time.
The player reportedly extended his Hearts of Oak contract before he was sold to Swiss side FC Zurich with his club Hearts of Oak getting $150,000 as training and development fees but has a big future sell-on clause inserted into the contract.
Hearts were close to losing the player on a free transfer as the forward’s contract was due to expire by the end of the month.
Hearts had opened contract talks with the talented forward for months now but finally, a compromise has been reached between the pair.
Barnieh was part of the Black Stars squad that played at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar although he did not play a single minute but featured in Ghana’s last preparatory game against Switzerland where he shone.
Hearts had tabled a new proposal before the player but he and his representatives had rejected it with a free transfer move on the cards.
Afriyie Barnieh had received a lot of offers from European and African clubs but has now decided to go to Switzerland.
The Ghana U23 player has been in great form for the home-based Ghana national team as he contributed immensely to their qualification for the 2022 CHAN tournament.
Afriyie Barnieh scored three goals in four matches in the qualifiers against Benin and Nigeria, earning in place in the Black Star’s final squad for the World Cup in Qatar.
The former Ghana U20 captain attracted a lot of attention at home and abroad when he excelled in the last warm-up friendly match against Switzerland in Abu Dhabi on November 17, 2022.
The young attacker was handed his very first start for Ghana at the senior level as the Black Stars beat the Swiss team by a 2-0 scoreline.
Afriyie Barnieh was impressive for the Ghana U23 side when they eliminated Mozambique from the Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers with him scoring in each of the two-legged ties.