This past Saturday was not only just a draw between the Vancouver Whitecaps and Seattle Sounders, it was a coming out party for a young Vancouver midfielder by the name of Gershon Koffie. Koffie stole the show with eight shots, three on target, and scored the Whitecaps second goal of the match.
Relegated to the bench throughout the first part of the season due to the depth of the midfield that Vancouver displays, Koffie earned the starting nod because of an injury to Nigel Reo-Coker. The inspired Ghana player began the game playing hard and only grew in stamina as the match went on.
The game this past weekend was an important one to both the Whitecaps as well as Seattle as it was a Cascadia Cup match along with an MLS regular season match. Many players “step-up” their play when there is extra importance placed upon a particular match and Koffie seemed to have been inspired by starting in such a match.
On the defensive end, Koffie added support to the backline and when called upon, he pushed forward which is what Vancouver’s Head Coach, Carl Robinson, expects from his midfield. Gershon displays an immense amount of speed and is capable of spreading out the opponent’s defense allowing his teammates the ability to crash the net while he set’s the offensive play in motion. Koffie has demonstrated that he possesses the technical skill to handle a full-back one-on-one and beat him with a pace that only few have shown in the past. Along with the technical skill, his passing ability has improved and he is able to spot a teammate and deliver a crisp pass that usually lands on the foot of said teammate. The composure that Koffie has shown on the pitch tells a lot about the training he received while growing up in Ghana.
Gershon Koffie joined a development club called Rot-Weiss Accra at the age of nine and trained with them for five years. At the age of fifteen, Koffie signed with Ghana’s Division Two club International Allies and played four full seasons with them. Vancouver scouts were impressed by the play of Koffie that they invited him to Canada and soon after, he signed a professional contract with the Whitecaps.
Many fans this past weekend were expecting big plays out of Vancouver’s usual suspects such as Erik Hurtado and Kekuta Manneh, but, it was the 22 year-old from Ghana that had everyone in the stands cheering during the match and after the match. Koffie did not play at all in two of Vancouver’s matches this season and appeared off the bench as a substitute in many matches thus far. With nine games played this season, Koffie sits third on the team with a total of seventeen shots and four on goal. It goes to show that when given the chance to show and prove what you are capable of doing, others, especially coaches, will take notice and the future is only going to improve for Gershon Koffie. He has stepped out from the shadows of his teammates and now will be the focus of future opponents as not to be victimized as Seattle was this past Saturday.
Thank you for reading. Please take a moment to follow me on Twitter – @LWOSEric. Support LWOS by following us on Twitter – @LastWordOnSport – and “liking” our Facebook page.
For the latest sports injury news, check out our friends at sports injury alert.
Feel free to discuss this and other footy related articles with thousands of fans at r/football.
Main Photo:
