English-born Ghanaian forward Denzeil Boadu has officially completed his move to League 2 club Crawley Town.
Boadu, 22, joins the fourth tier club on a two-year contract as a free agent after leaving Borussia Dortmund this summer.
As a teenager, the Londoner played for England under-17s and under-18s whilst with his first club Tottenham Hotspur. He then played for Arsenal’s Academy team before joining Manchester City where he was a regular in their under-23s until he suffered a bad foot injury after scoring a hat-trick in a 7-0 win over Bolton Wanderers. That was in 2015 and he was out of action for a year and eight months before heading to Germany, where he made 29 appearances for Borussia.
Director of Football Selim Gaygusuz said: “When you consider Denzeil’s pedigree, we are absolutely delighted that he has joined the club.
“The injury he had really stalled his progress but everywhere he has played his ability and work-rate have never been in doubt. We have spoken to people at all of his former clubs and done our homework.
“You don’t play at the clubs Denzeil has played for if you haven’t got a special talent. Sometimes you have to take a step back to go forward again in your career and this is an opportunity for Denzeil to do that and he is desperate to make the most of his new beginning.”
Boadu, whose generation includes Chelsea’s Tammy Abraham, is yet to see his breakthrough after suffering series of injuries in recent years.
Boadu had unsuccessful trials with Reading as well as Dutch Eerste Division side Oss this summer.
Head Coach Gabriele Cioffi added: “I think Denzeil is going to be a very good fit for this club and the way I want us to move forward with a young, hungry squad. He is fit and has worked hard this summer and I am sure our fans will enjoy watching him play.”
His has also had stints with Arsenal and Manchester City.
