Baba Rahman Chelsea's New Left Back

Abdul Rahman Baba, also known as Baba Rahman, is a Ghanaian international with 11 caps to his name. He plays for German Bundesliga side FC Augsburg, who has been linked with a £17.5 million move to both A.S Roma and Chelsea in recent weeks and I’m about to tell you why.

It’s not the first time Baba Rahman has been linked with an English club, when Baba Rahman was at Asante Kotoko, in Ghana, he was linked with Arsenal and Manchester City, but a move never materialised due to the strict work permit regulations. Baba opted for a move to SpVgg Greuther Furth in Germany, where he spent 2 seasons there, playing 44 games and managing to get on the score sheet twice in the process, scoring both against Greuther Furth rivals FC Nuremberg in a 5-1 win, that where to be his last appearance in a Shamrock shirt. The following day he signed for FC Augsburg, where he went from strength to strength, being first choice as well as playing 31 out of 34 games for the Bavarian side, where they finished in a rather well deserved 5^th place which brought qualification for next season’s edition of the Europa League. Throughout the season,  at one stage Baba also had the highest tackle rate of any player in the Bundesliga, beating the likes of Mats Hummels, Jerome Boateng and many more with a rate of 4.8 tackles per game, so there one thing we know about Baba, he’s not afraid to put a foot in. If his move to Chelsea does materialize, with the impending move of Left Back Felipe Luis returning back to his former club Athletico Madrid for £15 million, that stat alone will put a smile on Mourinho’s face.

On the international stage, Baba was first choice for the Black Stars at this year’s African Cup of Nations, starting every game, on route to the final where they lost to Ivory Coast 9-8 on penalties; Baba did take a penalty and coolly slotting it to his right.

All in all Baba Rahman reminds me of a David Alaba type player, with a  similar build, can cross the ball, bags of stamina, and the ability to get up and down the pitch, where he is not only great offensively, but knows how to defend too. It’s no reason to see why Baba is Jose’s first choice to succeed Felipe Luis, the only problem for Baba is trying to dislodge Azpilicueta from that Left Back position, which if you ask Felipe isn’t no easy feat.   

Here's Baba at his very best 

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