‘Sunderland Exit Made Me One of World’s Highest-Paid Stars

The Premier League has been blessed with cult heroes aplenty, and Asamoah Gyan might just be one of the most fascinating stars in this category.

The Ghanaian legend spent two years as a Sunderland player, having joined for a fee of £13million in the summer of 2010. What followed was quite a remarkable rise and fall, both in terms of football and finances.

This is the remarkable story of Gyan — the star who went from rags to riches and back again.

Asamoah Gyan’s Playing Career

Born in Accrah, Ghana, Gyan started his career at Liberty Professionals in 2003 before being snapped up by Udinese for an undisclosed fee later that year. Including two years spent on loan with Modena, the striker spent five years with Udinese before joining Rennes in 2008 for £8million after scoring 11 goals in 40 appearances for the Serie A side.

During his two years in France, Gyan became renowned for his goalscoring exploits and earned his £13million switch to Sunderland in the Premier League. Scoring 11 goals in 37 matches, Gyan helped the Black Cats to a 10th-place finish in the English top-flight before completing a lucrative move to Saudi side Al Ain on an initial loan deal.

While the reason for his move can’t be confirmed, Gyan was earning three times his Sunderland salary as he raked in £160,000 per week in the United Arab Emirates. As if that pay packet wasn’t enough, he then completed an even more lucrative switch in 2015 when he joined Shanghai SIPG under ex-England manager Sven-Goran Eriksson. There he was reported to be the eighth highest-paid footballer in the world, earning £227,000 a week.

Winding down his career in Turkey, India and Ghana, Gyan also became his nation’s all-time leading goalscorer with 51 goals in 109 appearances, including being the leading African scorer in World Cup history with six. This included missing a penalty in the 2010 World Cup quarter-final clash with Uruguay following Luis Suarez’s infamous handball.

Gyan’s Money Troubles

Despite the incredible wealth that Gyan accumulated during his career, it all seemingly disappeared as his playing career started to wind down. In 2018, while playing for Turkish side Keyserispor, the striker claimed that he was left with only £597 in the bank. Speaking to MyNewsGh.com in 2018, he claimed: “My front and back, up and down is that money you see there.”

Gyan also showed his bank statements to back up his claim, also alleging that he was owed wages from the Turkish side.

It was quite a remarkable fall from grace one a man who was among the best-paid stars on the planet just three years earlier.

Retired Striker’s Change in Fortunes

While hitting rock-bottom financially during the latter years of his career, Gyan has more than made up for it since hanging up his goal-scoring boots.

Retiring from football in 2021, it’s the Ghana legend’s off-field ventures that have boosted his bank balance once again.

Gyan boasts an array of companies — often prefixed ‘BabyJet’—in a number of areas. These include boxing promotion, buses, planes, real estate, bottled water, rice and noodles, petrol stations, politics, and even bankrolling several Ghanaian music stars.

It’s estimated that he now has a net worth of around £17million, setting himself up perfectly for retirement. But despite his financial gain, Gyan has spoken openly about his desire to give back to those less fortunate than himself. As quoted by Marca, he said: