Charlton Athletic U18s midfielder Jimmy Appiah spoke to Valley Gold for Academy Notes after Saturday’s six-goal thriller at Sheffield United.
The 18-year-old who is originally from Ghana is currently living with the club’s Player Liaison Officer Tracey Leaburn and her family. He told Valley Gold:
“Tracey is like a mother to me — I was living in South London with my parents and siblings before I started playing for Charlton at the end of the U14s season.”
“I’ve been at this great club for about 5 seasons now and I’ve loved every step of the journey. I am very passionate about the game. I consider myself as a holding midfielder who sits and protects the backline and tidies things up across the pitch just like N’Golo Kanté. My playing style is very similar to Kanté and I’ve been compared to him because of my size & stature too.
“My coaches and teammates trust my ability to go into individual duels and 90% of the time I will come out victorious and that’s my major strength. I can also read the game very well and anticipate what my opponent is going to do and this helps me to predict the outcome of my opponent’s next move.”
Speaking about the 3-3 draw at Sheffield United, Jimmy added:
“I was glad that I played in the Sheffield United game because it was a really good game overall and the team’s performance was also very good. Every player was up for the challenge because we knew they would be a tough side to play against.
“Furthermore, we started well in the first half which saw us establish a 3-1 lead, with goals from Tyreece Campbell, an opposition own goal and Jason Adigun putting us on top.
“But we let our chance slip by, by not starting the second half well which gave them the confidence to apply pressure. They realised we let our foot off the pedal and that’s because we thought we had already won the game. They were all over us and they showed good spirit and character to get back in the game.
“We played some really good football at times from the back to build-up play as Charlton is known for their style of play from the First team through to the Academy. All the players were brave and wanted the ball at all times to help each other out and this is also because we train how we play. The disappointing thing was that we should have killed the game off and not let them back in but I guess this will be a huge learning curve for us players moving forward.”
Valley Gold enables supporters to play a pivotal role in the future of Charlton Athletic by helping the club to unearth talented footballers through its youth system. Valley Gold is entirely supporter-funded, with membership costing £120 per year. As a member of Valley Gold, you will also have the opportunity to scoop up to £5,000 in regular cash prizes. To learn more about the scheme or to become a Valley Gold member, please click here.