Kingsley Schindler: what you need to know about the new Black Stars midfielder

Ghanaians woke up to the news that the head coach of the Black Stars, Chris Hughton has invited a replacement for Brighton and Hove Albion defender Tariq Lamptey. But who is Kingsley Schindler, the new boy called to the national team?

We bring you a low down about the young man expected to shore up the midfield of the Black Stars against Angola.

Kingsley Schindler is a German-born Ghanaian midfielder who plays for the German Bundesliga club FC Cologne. He spent his youth career playing for SC Concordia, Hannover 96 and TSG Neustrelitz before transferring to Hoffenheim II in 2013. At 1899 Hoffenheim II, he competed in the Regionalliga Südwest (English: Regional League Southwest), the fourth tier of the German football league in the states of Hesse, Baden-Württemberg, Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland.

Schindler became a professional in 2017 when he qualified with Holstein Kiel to the 2. Bundesliga, having joined the team in 2016. He left Holstein Kiel in 2019 and joined FC Köln and achieved promotion with them to the Bundesliga before he was loaned to Hanover 96 in 2020.

At Holstein Kiel, he made over 90 appearances and scored over 30 goals for the club, marking a new height for him following his 15 goals in 77 appearances for his former side, 1899 Hoffenheim II.

In the ongoing season, Schindler has made 26 appearances for FC Koln, one in the UEFA Conference League qualifiers, five in the Conference League and 20 in the Bundesliga. He has often played as a right-back, right midfielder or right winger but can also be deployed on the left side of the defence, midfield or attackers. It must also be noted that he has played over 10 times as a centre forward and has scored nine goals from that position during his youth career.