Ainooson joins Al Hilal

Sudanese giants, Al Hilal, have captured Kumasi Asante Kotoko centre-back, Abeiku Ainooson, after the Porcupine Warriors released him on a season-long loan deal to the North Africans.

Ainooson’s move comes just a week after Kennedy Ashia of Liberty Professionals also made a surprise move to the same club, with Inter Allies player and reigning Best Defender in the local league, Baba Mensah, also reported to be on the radar of the Sudanese club.

The Kotoko defender became the latest addition to a tall list of Ghanaian players who appear to be finding a safe haven in a country that has been ravaged by prolonged armed conflict for over two decades.

The Sudanese bandwagon has affected the likes of Coach Kwasi Appiah who is managing club side Al Khartoum, Edward Affum with Al Merreikh, Yakubu Razak (Al Hilal) and Ghandi Kassenu (Al Merreikh). Others are Augustine Okrah and Francis Cofie, both of who play for Al Merreikh.

It appears The Sudan has also found favour with Ghanaian players after Ghanaian quartet of Solomon Asante, Daniel Nii Adjei, Gladson Awako and Kissi Boateng helped TP Mazembe to win this year’s  CAF Champions League.

The growing demand for Ghanaian players has seen the local clubs becoming second choice for Ghanaian players with the North African sides easily winning the negotiation tussle whenever there is competition for indigenous players mainly due to the lucrative salaries offered to their players.

This practice is threatening the local league, which is gradually losing its best talents and further plunging Ghana football into oblivion, explaining partly why the local Black Stars failed to qualify for next year’s CHAN competition.

On the international scene, Ghanaian football is rated among the powerhouses on the continent, with The Sudan being far behind Ghana. But the injection of capital has made the North African country’s league more lucrative and preferred by some players from the sub-region.