While many Ghanaian footballers dream of traveling abroad to play their trade to enhance their brand and chances of earning national team call ups, Accra Hearts of Oak returnee Nuru Sulley has a contrary view to this and has made a shocking revelation of what influenced his decision to return to the Ghana Premier League (GPL).
The former Accra Great Olympics centre back moved beyond the shores of Ghana to continue his playing career after a successful three seasons stay at Accra Hearts of Oak in 2014. Sulley moved to Libya where he played for clubs like Al-Nasr SC Benghazi, Al-Ittihad Club Tripoli before he was later loaned to Egyptian club Tala’ea El Gaish Sporting Club, all between 2014 and 2015.
The 2013 WAFU champion advanced in talent and caught the eyes of Turkish top flight side Alanyaspor who came after him. Sulley joined Alanyaspor in 2015 where he played top flight European football for two seasons before moving to Iraq.
In April this year, the versatile centre back returned home to rejoin his former club Hearts of Oak on a two-year deal, and has explained the reasons behind his return. In his submission, Sulley acknowledged that he became popular through the platform given him by Hearts of Oak during his first stint with the club, and with his career taking a nose dive abroad, he came to regain his fame and competitiveness.
“Since I started playing fooball, the club that gave me the platform to shine was Accra Hearts of Oak”, Nuru Sulley told ghanasportspage.com. “In football sometimes you will travel to play but when you don’t get things the way you want it then you have to come home and start again. When I started to travel where I played in Turkey, after that I went to Iraq too to play, but how I wanted it that was not how I got it”, Sulley explained.
After crediting Accra Hearts of Oak for his success, Sulley revealed that despite having played in a more advanced league like the Turkish Super Lig, his name (brand) has gone down and more importantly, national team call ups which has been his dream have also eluded him and that has become a major worry for him. Surprisingly, Sulley believes that playing in the domestic league and for no other club than the Phobians, will enhance his chances of regaining a call up to the senior national team, the Black Stars, especially with CK Akonnor as the current coach.
To recall, recently appointed Black Stars coach CK Akonnor handed three local players a call up to the Black Stars squad to play in the 2021 AFCON qualifiers double header against Sudan before the coronavirus pandemic forced football into suspension. These players were Accra Hearts of Oak’s number one stopper Richard Atta, Habib Mohammed (Asante Kotoko), Yahaya Mohammed (Aduana Stars) and Kwadwo Amoako of Ashantigold SC. According to Nuru Sulley the call ups of these local players to the Black Stars by CK Akonnor gave him hopes that if he returns to Hearts of Oak his chances of wearing the national colours will surely be enhanced.
“I did not get things the way I wanted (outside) because, it was like my name had gone down and in terms of national team (Black Stars) which is my dream to play for. So I thought it wise that why not, because now our national team which has been given to CK Akonnor to coach, they are trying to include some of the local players in the team, so why not return home to play and perform well and gain national team call up to the Black Stars?”, he explained.
To enable him realise his Black Stars dream, Nuru Sulley says he opted to join Hearts of Oak because it is the club that can help him to accomplish his aim. “So I sat down and thought about it well and realised that no, Hearts is the team that can help me because when I came a lot of clubs spoke to me but it’s Hearts that gave me the platform to shine so why don’t I come home to help the home team, so that’s the reason why I decided to play for Accra Hearts of Oak again”, he disclosed.
For the records, Nuru Sulley earned his maiden national team call up into the then Maxwell Konadu led WAFU team that won Ghana gold at the 2013 WAFU Nations Cup staged in Ghana. He was also part of the Ghana squad that won silver at the 2014 Africa Nations Championship (CHAN) in South Africa.
