Gerald Asamoah


Gerald Asamoah is a Ghanaian-born German former footballer who played as a forward. He was known for his pace and strength.

Early life

Born in Mampong, Ghana, Asamoah and his family emigrated to Germany in 1990.

Club career

Asamoah started his career with Hannover 96 where he played 79 games before moving to Schalke in 1999. He played over 275 league games for the club over 11 years with the team. On 1 June 2010, Asamoah signed a two-year contract with the then Bundesliga-promoted club St. Pauli. In June 2011 he terminated this contract. From 12 July 2011 on, Asamoah was at VfB Hüls, keeping himself fit. After six months without a club, Asamoah signed for SpVgg Greuther Fürth on 10 January 2012. Asamoah won the second division title with SpVgg Greuther Fürth and played in the Bundesliga in the 2012–13 season. On 15 July 2013, it was announced that Asamoah will return to Schalke 04 as a player for Schalke's second team.

International career

Asamoah made his debut for Germany in 2001 against Slovakia, making him the first African-born black player to ever play for the side, as Erwin Kostedde and Jimmy Hartwig, two previous internationals with black ancestry, were both born in Germany to African-American fathers. He scored on his debut, and went on to play in the 2002 and 2006 World Cups.

Career statistics

Club

Personal life

Asamoah is married and has two children, twins Jada and Jaden. He suffers from a heart condition, hypertrophic non-obstructive cardiomyopathy. In his case, the flesh lobe that separates the right and left heart chambers is extremely thick, which can cause an arrhythmic heartbeat. Asamoah's brother Lewis last played for 1. FC Wülfrath and his cousin Emmanuel plays for the U-17 of FC St. Pauli. On 13 January 2016, Asamoah accepted the 2015 FIFA Fair Play Award on behalf of football organizations and clubs around the world, working to support refugees in the face of conflict.

Honours

Club

Schalke 04
Greuther Fürth
Germany