Jeffrey Nana Darko Sarpong ( ; born 3 August 1988) is a Ghanaian professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...

who plays as an

attacking midfielder A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

for FK Panevėžys.

Career

Ajax

Sarpong joined

Ajax Ajax may refer to: Greek mythology and tragedy * Ajax the Great, a Greek mythological hero, son of King Telamon and Periboea * Ajax the Lesser, a Greek mythological hero, son of Oileus, the king of Locris * ''Ajax'' (play), by the ancient Gree ...

when he was just seven years of age, and signed his first contract in 2005. Vol Beloften: Jeffrey Sarpong
, Ajax.nl At the time

Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament const ...

were interested in signing the player, but he decided to stay with

. He made his

Eredivisie The Eredivisie (; ''"Honour Division"'' or ''"Premier Division"'') is the highest level of professional football in the Netherlands. The league was founded in 1956, two years after the start of professional football in the Netherlands. It is ...

debut on 5 February 2006 in the 3–2 away defeat against

Feyenoord Feyenoord Rotterdam () is a Dutch professional football club in Rotterdam, which plays in the Eredivisie, the top tier in Dutch football. Founded as Wilhelmina in 1908, the club changed to various names before settling on being called after its ...

. Sarpong played in eight more league matches during the season. In addition he and his team won the

KNVB Cup The KNVB Beker (; en, KNVB Cup), branded as the TOTO KNVB Beker for sponsorship reasons, is a competition in the Netherlands organized by the Royal Dutch Football Association (KNVB) since 1898. It was based on the format of the English FA Cup. O ...

, but in the 2006–07 season he did not play a single league match. In July 2007, Sarpong extended his contract, which kept him until 2011. However, the following season he became first-team regular under new coach

Marco van Basten Marcel "Marco" van Basten (; born 31 October 1964) is a Dutch football manager and retired professional player, who played for Ajax and AC Milan, as well as the Netherlands national team, as a striker. Widely regarded as one of the greatest ...

netting his first goal in a 2–2 away draw against no other than

. A week later, on 2 October 2008, he scored again, in the first round of UEFA Cup; second leg, against

Borac Čačak Borac may refer to: * FK Borac Banja Luka, a football club from Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina ** RK Borac Banja Luka, an affiliated team handball club ** OK Borac, an affiliated volleyball club * FK Borac Čačak, a football club from Čača ...

. The 2009/10 season was difficult for Sarpong to gain back his valuable first-team experience by being placed on a loan list. Having yet make his first league appearance for Ajax this season, Sarpong says he's very "eager" and "desperate" to make a return in the first team. On 31 December 2009,

loaned the 21-year-old Dutch youth international to NEC until the end of the 2009–10 season. He made his debut for the club in a 2–1 win over

Vitesse Arnhem Vitesse may refer to: * Vitesse Models, a diecast model car company * Vitesse (band), Dutch rock band * Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport Vitesse, a car * Rover 216 Vitesse, a car * Rover 3500 Vitesse, a car * Rover 800 Vitesse, a car * Triumph Vit ...

. In the quarter final of KNVB Beker, against his former club, Sarpong provided assist for the second goal for the club in a match, but was sent off after a second bookable offense, as NEC lost 3–2. Two months later, on 19 March 2010, he was sent off again in the last minutes, as NEC heavily lost 4–1 against

Heerenveen Heerenveen (, fry, It Hearrenfean ) is a town and municipality in the province of Friesland (Fryslân), in the Northern Netherlands. In 2021, the town had a population of 29,790 (1 January) while the municipality had a population 50,859 (1 July). ...

. Having made an impressive start at NEC, Sarpong hinted he might have earned a spot in the World Cup. At the end of the 2009/10 season, the club announced that they would not sign Sarpong on a permanent basis. He made sixteen appearances in all competitions.

Real Sociedad

On 2 August 2010, it emerged that the

La Liga The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known simply as Primera División in Spain, and as La Liga in English-speaking countries and officially as LaLiga Santander for sponsorship reasons, stylized as LaLiga, is the men' ...

side

Real Sociedad Real Sociedad de Fútbol, S.A.D., more commonly referred to as Real Sociedad (; ''Royal Society''), La Real in Spanish, Erreala in Basque, is a Spanish professional sports club in the city of San Sebastián, Basque Country, founded on 7 Septemb ...

were interested in Jeffrey. But no official bid was made until the 15th. On the 21st it was rumoured he was in San Sebastián and on the following day

confirmed the signing of Jeffrey Sarpong for an undisclosed fee. Sarpong was given the number 14 shirt. After his debut was delayed over injuries and problem, Sarpong finally his debut on 3 October 2010 in a 1–0 home victory to

Espanyol Reial Club Deportiu Espanyol de Barcelona (; "Royal Spanish Sports Club of Barcelona"), commonly known as Espanyol, is a professional sports club based in Barcelona, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top tier of the Spanish football league s ...

and the next game, on 17 October 2010, Sarpong scored his first goal in a 2–1 loss against Levante. A week later, on 28 October 2010, Sarpong scored again, in the fourth round of Copa Del Ray; first round, in a 3–2 loss against

Almería Almería (, , ) is a city and municipality of Spain, located in Andalusia. It is the capital of the province of the same name. It lies on southeastern Iberia on the Mediterranean Sea. Caliph Abd al-Rahman III founded the city in 955. The city gr ...

. He soon went on the sidelines after sustaining a dislocated shoulder during a training-ground clash, which left him out for a months. But made his return on 6 November 2010, in a 1–0 win over Racing Santander. Despite a promising start at the club, Sarpong had a disappointing season, having made 18 appearances. The next season, even his first team became increasingly limited, under manager

Philippe Montanier Philippe Jacques William Montanier (born 15 November 1964) is French professional football manager and former player who is the head coach of club Toulouse. As a player, he was as a goalkeeper. Early life Philippe Jacques William Montanier was ...

and made only three appearances. On 5 January 2013, Sarpong terminated his contract at Sociedad by mutual consent after three-year at the club.

Loan spell

On the last day of the winter transfer window, Sarpong joined

NAC Breda NAC Breda (), often simply known as NAC, is a Dutch professional football club, based in Breda, Netherlands. NAC Breda play in the Rat Verlegh Stadium, named after their most important player, Antoon 'Rat' Verlegh. They play in the Eerste Divi ...

on loan for the rest of the season. On 11 February 2012, he made his debut for the club, coming on as a substitute for Ömer Bayram, in a 2–0 loss against his former club, Ajax. On 28 April 2012, Sarpong scored his first goal for the club, in a 3–1 win over Utercht. On 30 August 2012, it announced that Sarpong joined Segunda División side Hércules for the rest of the season. He made his debut for the club, on 2 September 2012, in a 1–0 loss against

Alcorcón Alcorcón () is a city and municipality of Spain located in the Community of Madrid. as of 2020, it had a population of 172,384. Geography The municipality, largely flat, lies at an average altitude of 711 metres above sea level, with the h ...

after coming on as a substitute in the 80th minute. After five months at the club, Sarpong left the club, following his release from Real Sociedad.

Return to NAC Breda and free agency

After a trial with

Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...

side,

Stoke City Stoke City Football Club is a professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, which competes in the . Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, it changed its name to Stoke in 1878 and then to Stoke City in 1925 after Sto ...

as well as

Football League Championship The English Football League Championship (often referred to as the Championship for short or the Sky Bet Championship for sponsorship purposes) is the highest division of the English Football League (EFL) and second-highest overall in the E ...

club,

Sheffield Wednesday Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1867 as an offshoot ...

in January, it was announced on 9 April 2013 that Sarpong had rejoined

on a three-year deal with the club, starting in the next season. The deal was cut short, and Sarpong was released at the end of the 2014–15 season. He has since been on trial with Football League Championship team,

Blackburn Rovers Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club, based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second tier of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. T ...

, and appeared in a friendly match against

Tranmere Rovers Tranmere Rovers Football Club is a professional association football club based in Birkenhead, Merseyside, England. The team compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1884 as Belmont Football Club, they adop ...

, scoring his side's first goal. The match concluded 2–0 to Blackburn.

Wellington Phoenix

Sarpong joined

Wellington Phoenix FC Wellington Phoenix Football Club is a professional association football club based in Wellington, New Zealand. It competes in the Australian A-League, under licence from Football Federation Australia. Phoenix entered the competition in the ...

after he signed for them on 25 August 2015, he was released on 31 January 2016 by mutual consent.

Later career

On 9 August 2016, Sarpong agreed to move on a free transfer to the Greek Superleague club

Veria Veria ( el, Βέροια or Βέρροια), officially transliterated Veroia, historically also spelled Berea or Berœa, is a city in Central Macedonia, in the geographic region of Macedonia, northern Greece, capital of the regional unit of ...

. In 2017, Sarpong went to play in Turkey at Elazığspor. He was allowed to leave in May 2018. In the 2018–19 season, Sarpong played for Greek club Skoda

Xanthi Xanthi ( el, Ξάνθη, ''Xánthi'', ) is a city in the region of Western Thrace, northeastern Greece. It is the capital of the Xanthi regional unit of the region of East Macedonia and Thrace. Amphitheatrically built on the foot of Rhodope m ...

. On 10 February 2021, he signed for Lithuanian side FK Panevėžys.

International career

Sarpong represented the Netherlands in the

2005 FIFA U-17 World Championship The 2005 FIFA U-17 World Championship, the eleventh edition of the tournament, was held in the cities of Lima, Trujillo, Chiclayo, Piura and Iquitos in Peru between 16 September and 2 October 2005. Players born after 1 January 1988 could particip ...

in Peru, where the team finished third. On 24 June 2009, the young midfielder swapped representing the Netherlands internationally for The Black Stars of

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in Ghana–Ivory Coast border, the west, Burkina ...

. He maintain his desire to play for The Black Stars ahead of the Africa Cup of Nations.

Personal life

He became the second Junior Dutch International to swap The

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

for

after Quincy Owusu-Abeyie turned out for Holland at the

2005 FIFA World Youth Championship The 2005 FIFA World Youth Championship was the 15th edition of the FIFA World Youth Championship. It took place in the Netherlands between 10 June and 2 July 2005. Venues Qualification The following 24 teams qualified for the 2005 FIFA Wor ...

. Sarpong was married on 24 May 2012. Sarpong leads the Dutch branch of a bible study for footballers called ''Ballers in God'', which includes players such as Vicente Besuijen,

Elson Hooi Elson Quincy Hooi (born 1 October 1991) is a Curaçaoan footballer who plays as a right winger for Al-Minaa and the Curaçao national team. He formerly played for NAC Breda, Viborg FF, FC Volendam, Ermis Aradippou, and Vendsyssel FF. Caree ...

and

Kingsley Ehizibue Kingsley Osezele Ehizibue (born 25 May 1995) is a professional footballer who plays as a right back for Serie A club Udinese. Born in Germany and raised in the Netherlands, he represents Nigeria internationally. Early years Ehizibue was born i ...

Statistics

References

External links

Voetbal International profile

Real Sociedad official profile
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sarpong, Jeffrey 1988 births Living people Footballers from Amsterdam Dutch people of Ghanaian descent Dutch footballers Ghanaian footballers Association football midfielders Eredivisie players Eerste Divisie players AFC Ajax players NEC Nijmegen players NAC Breda players Wellington Phoenix FC players Veria F.C. players Xanthi F.C. players La Liga players Segunda División players Real Sociedad footballers Hércules CF players A-League Men players Super League Greece players Dutch expatriate footballers Expatriate footballers in Spain Expatriate soccer players in Australia Expatriate footballers in Greece Dutch expatriate sportspeople in Australia Dutch expatriate sportspeople in Spain Dutch expatriate sportspeople in Greece Expatriate footballers in Turkey Dutch expatriate sportspeople in Turkey