Former Arsenal midfielder Emmanuel Frimpong starts trial with Austrian side Sturm Graz today

Published on: 24 July 2014
Former Arsenal midfielder Emmanuel Frimpong starts trial with Austrian side Sturm Graz today
Emmanuel Frimpong start trial with Sturm Graz today

Ghana and ex-Arsenal midfielder Emmanuel Frimpong will start trials with Austrian side Sturm Graz today (Thursday) to test his fitness before signing a contract, GHANAsoccernet.com can exclusively reveal.

The 22-year-old has already agreed the contract with the top-flight side but the Austrians want to be sure he is fully fit before the deal is sealed.

Frimpong has already reached a deal on his salary and the terms of his contract after visiting the club earlier this month but doubts over his fitness remain after suffering serious knee injuries in his young career.

Even though he successfully underwent a medical at the club when he visited them at the start of the month, doctors are unsure of his physical condition.

This prompted the decision to give him a try-out before he seals the bumper deal on a free transfer after being released by English side Barnsley.

"Three weeks ago, we carried out the medical checks at Emmanuel. Now we want to test, on the advice of our doctors, his physical condition in daily training," Sturm Graz general manager Gerhard Goldbrich said.

Frimpong, 22, came through the youth ranks at Arsenal and looked set to have a bright future in the game but the distractions off the pitch and injuries took over as his progress on the pitch stuttered.

His time at Arsenal came to an end in January of this year as they allowed him to leave for Barnsley who got rid of him as the season ended.

Frimpong was sent off on his debut for two tackles in a matter of minutes to confirm the downward spiral in his career, and now for someone who was set to star for Arsenal in their first-team, he is set to play in Austria with Sturm Graz.

Some fans may remember Graz were the Austrian opponents for Rafael Benitez’s first competitive match in charge of Liverpool in 2004 as they attempted to qualify for the Champions League.

It is certainly a huge step down in Frimpong’s career but it may be the kick he needs to reignite his faltering career.

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Frimpong played nine games for Barnsley, picking up five yellow cards and one red card.

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