Kwadwo Baah

Kwadwo Baah

Personal information
Full name	Kwadwo Kyeremeh Baah [1]
Date of birth	(2003-01-27) 27 January 2003 (age 21) [2]
Place of birth	Horb am Neckar, Germany
Height	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) [3]
Position(s)	Forward
Team information
Current team	Watford
Number	34
Youth career
2012–2013	Moonshot
2013–2017	Crystal Palace
2017–2019	Kinetic Academy
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2019	Whyteleafe	1	(0)
2019–2021	Rochdale	37	(3)
2021–	Watford	3	(0)
2022–2023	→ Fortuna Düsseldorf (loan)	7	(0)
2023–2024	→ Burton Albion (loan)	20	(2)
International career‡
2021	England U18	1	(0)
2021–	Germany U19	3	(2)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 1 September 2024 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 21:44, 13 October 2021 (UTC)

Kwadwo Kyeremeh Baah is a German professional footballer who plays as a forward for EFL Championship club Watford.

Early life

Baah was born in Germany to Ghanaian parents, but was raised in South Norwood. ^[4]

Club career

Early career

In October 2016, aged 13, whilst Baah was at Crystal Palace, he caused controversy as a ball boy in a match against fellow London rivals West Ham United when he tried to stop the opponents time wasting by placing the ball in the six yard area for the goalkeeper Adrián. ^[5] Baah was released by Crystal Palace at 14. He has credited that moment as a turning point in his development, admitting he didn't take many things seriously and knew he needed to change. ^[6]

Baah played one game for Whyteleafe in August 2019, who were managed by Kinetic Academy founder Harry Hudson. ^[7] He also had a trial with Fulham. ^[8]

Rochdale

On 20 September 2019, at the age of 16, Baah signed to a scholarship contract at Rochdale. ^[9] Baah made his first team league debut for Rochdale on 1 October, appearing as an 82nd minute substitute for Aaron Wilbraham in an EFL Trophy match at home to Bolton Wanderers. ^[10]

He scored his first professional goal in a 5–0 win at Wigan Athletic on 15 December 2020. ^[11] In February 2021, Baah was named EFL Young Player of the Month for January. ^[12]

Watford

On 1 February 2021, Baah was close to signing a pre-contract agreement with Manchester City, ^[13] however the deal collapsed. ^[14] Having undergone a medical with Watford at the end of April and a fee of £125,000 agreed, ^[15] he officially joined the club on 17 May ahead of their return to the Premier League. ^[16]

On 13 August 2024, Baah made his debut for Watford in a 5-0 EFL Cup win against MK Dons. He came on as a substitute for Rocco Vata in the 62nd minute and marked his debut by scoring just two minutes later. ^[17]

Fortuna Düsseldorf (loan)

On 29 July 2022, Baah joined 2. Bundesliga club Fortuna Düsseldorf on loan for the 2022–23 season. ^[18]

Burton Albion (loan)

On 18 August 2023, Baah joined EFL League One club Burton Albion on loan for the 2023–24 season. ^[19]

International career

On 29 March 2021, Baah made his debut for England U18s during a 2–0 win away to Wales at the Leckwith Stadium. ^[20] He was also called up to take part in an England U19s training camp in May 2021 at St George's Park. ^[21]

Baah was called up by Germany for the first time to represent their U19 side against Slovakia under-19's on 6 October 2021, followed by games against Portugal and the Netherlands youth squads. ^[22]

Career statistics

As of 1 September 2024

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			FA Cup		League Cup		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Whyteleafe	2019–20 [23]	Isthmian League South East Division	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
Rochdale	2019–20 [23]	League One	7	0	1	0	0	0	2 [lower-alpha 1]	0	10	0
	2020–21 [24]	League One	30	3	0	0	2	0	2 [lower-alpha 1]	0	34	3
	Total		37	3	1	0	2	0	4	0	44	3
Watford	2021–22	Premier League	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
	2024-25	Championship	3	0	0	0	2	1	0	0	5	1
Fortuna Düsseldorf (loan)	2022-23	2. Bundesliga	7	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	7	0
Burton Albion (loan)	2023–24	League One	20	2	0	0	0	0	1	0	21	2
Career total			68	5	1	0	3	1	5	0	78	6

1. Two appearances in EFL Trophy

References

1. "Notification of shirt numbers: Rochdale" (PDF). English Football League. p. 59. Retrieved 25 September 2020.
2. "Kwadwo Baah". rochdaleafc.co.uk. Rochdale A.F.C. Archived from the original on 5 March 2021. Retrieved 26 February 2020.
3. Kwadwo Baah at Soccerway. Retrieved 21 January 2021.
4. Aarons, Ed (21 January 2021). "'Special talent' Kwadwo Baah making waves at Rochdale after ballboy fame". The Guardian. Retrieved 22 January 2021.
5. "Crystal Palace 'punish' ball boy who tried to stop West Ham time-wasting". www.telegraph.co.uk. 21 October 2016. Retrieved 26 February 2020.
6. "The story of Man City target Kwadwo Baah - from famous ball boy to EFL wonderkid". www.mirror.co.uk. 12 February 2021. Retrieved 18 May 2021.
7. Pitt-Brooke, Jack (20 September 2019). "Kwadwo Baah: The English football prodigy you've probably never heard of" . The Athletic. Retrieved 21 January 2021.
8. Leventhal, Adam (17 May 2021). "Watford sign Kwadwo Baah, backflipping England U18s forward who went viral as Palace ballboy" . The Athletic. Retrieved 18 May 2021.
9. "Kwadwo Baah Signs A Two-Year Scholarship". www.rochdaleafc.co.uk. 20 September 2019. Retrieved 26 February 2020.
10. "Rochdale vs. Bolton Wanderers - 1 October 2019 - Soccerway". uk.soccerway.com. Retrieved 26 February 2020.
11. "Wigan 0-5 Rochdale". BBC Sport. 15 December 2020. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
12. "Rochdale prodigy wins Young Player of the Month". www.efl.com. 12 February 2021. Retrieved 18 May 2021.
13. Aarons, Ed (1 February 2021). "Manchester City to sign Rochdale's Kwadwo Baah at end of season". The Guardian. Retrieved 2 February 2021.
14. Pye, Freddie (9 March 2021). "Man City's January move for in-demand winger 'collapsed' at 'medical stage' - player to be back available in summer". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 17 May 2021.
15. "Kwadwo Baah: Rochdale forward undergoing medical at Watford ahead of proposed move to Vicarage Road". Sky Sports. 28 April 2021. Retrieved 17 May 2021.
16. "Kwadwo Baah: Watford sign Rochdale forward for 'six-figure fee'". BBC Sport. 17 May 2021. Retrieved 17 May 2021.
17. "Ince treble helps Watford thrash MK Dons in EFL Cup". BBC Sport. 13 August 2024.
18. "Official: Baah Completes Loan Move". www.watfordfc.com. 29 July 2022. Retrieved 29 July 2022.
19. "Official: Burton Loan For Baah". www.watfordfc.com. Retrieved 18 August 2023.
20. "TWO SECOND-HALF GOALS SEAL WIN FOR ENGLAND MEN'S UNDER-18S OVER WALES IN CARDIFF". TheFA.com. 29 March 2021. Retrieved 29 March 2021.
21. "Watford signing Kwadwo Baah gets England Under 19 call". watfordobserver.co.uk. 21 May 2021. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
22. "Internationals: Ten Hornets To Represent Their Countries". watfordfc.com. 5 October 2021. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
23. "Games played by Kwadwo Baah in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 26 February 2020.
24. "Games played by Kwadwo Baah in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 26 February 2020.