“I’m looking forward to returning, everything started in Kapfenberg,” said Paul Mensah ahead of FC Blau-Weiss Linz’s guest appearance today (2:30 p.m.) in the second division at his former club from Styria.
In 2018, the 23-year-old Ghanaian landed with the Falken in Austria – luck played a part in the fact that the offensive player was able to take his first steps in a professional league: “A Nigerian player who would have been invited to try out in Kapfenberg has his Missed flight. So I was contacted – and was able to convince Kurt Russ at the time.”
It was the end of long-term ventures to stay with a club in Europe: “I had previously trained with a number of Italian third division clubs, but then I wanted to take the opportunity in Austria.” The change was enormous: “Football is worked on in Ghana, the physique plays an enormous role. When I came to Europe, I had hardly heard anything about tactics.”
Nevertheless, he quickly drew attention to himself with his style of play: In 63 games with the Falken he scored 16 goals and provided ten assists. In 2021, the step to Romania to FC Botosani followed – in retrospect, this turned out to be wrong: “I played little, should have stayed in Austria. A transfer to Hartberg was also concrete at the time, but there were problems with the fee.”
Ronivaldo’s “successor”
But Mensah hasn’t lost his smile even in these difficult times: At Blau-Weiss, the African is considered a real “Sonny Boy”. “You have to have fun in life, I always want to convey a good feeling.”
He is not the only one from the current blue and white squad who started his career abroad in Kapfenberg: his club colleague Ronivaldo also came to Upper Styria from Brazil in 2013. He scored 122 goals in 199 second division games. Today the duo would like to leave Kapfenberg together with a smile after the game.
Source: Nachrichten
