Jerome Opoku
Ghanaian footballer (born 1998)
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Jerome Osei Opoku (born 14 October 1998) is a professional footballer. He plays as a centre-back for Süper Lig club İstanbul Başakşehir. Born in England, he plays for the Ghana national team.
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Opoku with Başakşehir in 2025 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Jerome Osei Opoku[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 14 October 1998[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Lambeth, England | ||
| Height | 1.97 m (6 ft 5+1⁄2 in)[2] | ||
| Position | Centre-back | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | İstanbul Başakşehir | ||
| Number | 3 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2009–2019 | Fulham | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2019–2022 | Fulham | 0 | (0) |
| 2019–2020 | → Accrington Stanley (loan) | 21 | (0) |
| 2020–2021 | → Plymouth Argyle (loan) | 33 | (1) |
| 2021–2022 | → Vejle (loan) | 20 | (0) |
| 2022–2024 | Arouca | 26 | (0) |
| 2023–2024 | → İstanbul Başakşehir (loan) | 28 | (4) |
| 2024– | İstanbul Başakşehir | 65 | (3) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2023– | Ghana | 13 | (1) |
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 10 June 2026 ‡ National team caps and goals as of 23 June 2026 | |||
Opoku grew up admiring Gareth Bale and initially aspired to become a top-class winger. However, during his U-15 years, his coach Mark Pembridge shifted him to left-back. Around the same time, a sudden growth spurt prompted another change — this time to centre-back — a position he would go on to play for most of his senior career.
As captain of Fulham’s U-16 team, Opoku led the side to victory in the 2014 Premier League International Cup, defeating a highly-rated Chelsea squad in the final.[citation needed]
Club career
He captained the Fulham U23s at the end of the 2018–19 season.[3]
On 2 September 2019, Opoku was sent on loan to League One side Accrington Stanley in order to gain first team experience.[4] He made his Accrington debut against Bristol Rovers on 7 September 2019 in an eventual 3–3 draw. After a 3–1 defeat to Sunderland, in an interview he claimed he would play anywhere the coach put him.[5]
On 25 September 2020, Opoku joined League One side Plymouth Argyle on loan until January.[6]
On 30 July 2021, Opoku was loaned out again, this time to Danish Superliga club Vejle Boldklub, for the entire 2021–22 season.[7]
On 24 June 2022, Opoku joined Portuguese Primeira Liga side Arouca on a free transfer, signing a three-year contract.[8][9]
On 14 September 2023, Opoku signed a one-year contract extension with Arouca, until 2026,[10] and was immediately sent on a season-long loan to Süper Lig side İstanbul Başakşehir.[11]
International career
Born in England, Opoku is of Ghanaian descent.[12] On 18 October 2023, he debuted for the Ghana national team in a friendly loss to the United States national team.[13]
On June 2, 2026, Opoku was integrated by Ghana's coach Carlos Queiroz into his list of 26 players in order to compete in the 2026 FIFA World Cup.[14]
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played 30 May 2025
| Club | Season | League | National cup | League cup | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Fulham U21 | 2017–18[15] | Premier League 2 | — | — | — | — | 1[a] | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||||
| 2018–19[16] | Premier League 2 | — | — | — | — | 2[b] | 0 | 2 | 0 | |||||
| Total | — | — | — | — | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | ||||||
| Accrington Stanley (loan) | 2019–20[17] | League One | 21 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 3[b] | 0 | 25 | 0 | |
| Plymouth Argyle (loan) | 2020–21[18] | League One | 33 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1[b] | 0 | 38 | 1 | |
| Vejle Boldklub (loan) | 2021–22[19] | Danish Superliga | 20 | 0 | 6 | 0 | — | — | — | 26 | 0 | |||
| Arouca | 2022–23 | Primeira Liga | 24 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 1 | — | — | 29 | 1 | ||
| 2023–24 | Primeira Liga | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2[c] | 0 | — | 4 | 0 | ||
| Total | 26 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | 33 | 1 | |||
| İstanbul Başakşehir (loan) | 2023–24 | Süper Lig | 28 | 4 | 4 | 0 | — | — | — | 32 | 4 | |||
| İstanbul Başakşehir | 2024–25 | Süper Lig | 33 | 3 | 5 | 3 | — | 11[c] | 0 | — | 47 | 3 | ||
| Total | 61 | 7 | 9 | 3 | — | 11 | 0 | — | 81 | 10 | ||||
| Total | 161 | 8 | 22 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 13 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 206 | 12 | ||
- Appearance(s) in EFL Trophy
- Appearances in the EFL Trophy
- Appearance(s) in UEFA Europa Conference League
International
- As of match played 8 September 2025[20]
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ghana | 2023 | 1 | 0 |
| 2024 | 2 | 1 | |
| 2025 | 3 | 0 | |
| Total | 6 | 1 | |
Scores and results list Ghana's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Opoku goal.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 26 March 2024 | Marrakech Stadium, Marrakech, Morocco |  Uganda | 1–0 | 2–2 | Friendly | |
