New SuperSport United midfielder Keanin Ayer is hoping his return to South Africa can spark his career towards the national team like Patrick Maswanganyi.
Ayer, 24, made his debut against Orlando Pirates in the 3-1 defeat in the MTN8 quarterfinal this weekend after 13 years outside of the country.
Having left his home of Eldorado Park at the age of 11 for the Right to Dream Academy in Accra, Ghana, he went on to make a move to Europe at the age of 18.
His professional career has seen him play in Sweden for Varbergs BoIs, Sandefjord in Norway and Næstved Boldklub in Denmark over the last six years.
However, he’s now joined SuperSport and when asked whether national team chances was part of the reasoning, he stated it was one of them, as the likes of Maswanganyi, who made his debut in the PSL at the same age after returning from Europe, has achieved.
“That’s the plan, that’s definitely part of it [coming to the PSL], it would definitely mean a lot for me to be part of the national team because I have been working hard and still didn’t get a chance, but I definitely know my chance is coming,” Ayer said when asked by iDiski Times whether ‘Tito’s rise is something he’d like to emulate.
“I’m so excited because I actually wanted to come [home] last year but the window was closed and now it’s like a relief because I’m now in the PSL, I’m mostly happy to be home, it’s nice.”
Ayer admits his journey in football hasn’t been easy, but he’s prepared for the rigours of professional football and despite the hardships of leaving home at such a young age, he would not have it any other way.
Ernest Nuamah, Kamaldeen Sulemana, Simon Adingra, and Mohammed Kudus are among the several high-profile talents that have emerged from the institution in recent years.
“I was 11, and when I turned 11, I went to Ghana, it really helped me, when you are away from home, when you have to live alone, you have to do things for yourself,” he explained.
“You grow as a person not only on the field but as an individual you grow a lot – so that’s really helped me. They taught us everything, we had character classes, school, and of course football, we would have extra classes, extra training, they teach you everything and it’s the best place, I would go there again if I could.”
Ayer racked up 126 games in Europe scoring eight goals with eight assists, primarily featuring as a right-back, out of his favoured midfield position.
