Nashville Soccer Club will acquire Major League Soccer winger David Accam from Columbus Crew SC for $350,000 in General Allocation Money and $100,000 in Targeted Allocation Money. The deal will be made official with Major League Soccer on January 1, 2020, and Accam will continue to play for Crew SC in 2019.
“The 2019 season is a one-year runway for us to prepare for the 2020 MLS season, and our staff has been really thoughtful about how our roster will be constructed,” said Nashville SC GM Mike Jacobs. “The idea of adding players is not necessarily about simply finding ‘good players’, but rather about finding ‘players that are good for Nashville.’ The scouting and recruitment of prospects has been really diligent, and our staff have been very strategic about identifying players that we believe will enable us to pursue excellence.”
Accam, 28, is a Ghanaian international and has scored 38 career goals in MLS since joining the league in 2015. As a member of the Chicago Fire from 2015-17, Accam scored 33 goals and added 15 assists in three seasons, including a career high 14 goals and eight assists in 2017. After spending the 2018 season and the beginning of this season with the Philadelphia Union, Accam was traded from Philadelphia to Columbus on May 8.
He has gotten off to a fast start in 2019, with four goals and two assists in just eight appearances for the Union and one for Crew SC. He was named the MLS Player of the Week in Week 4 following a two-goal, one-assist performance in a 3-0 win with Philadelphia over Columbus on March 23.
“David is a very exciting player,” said Smith. “He has exceptionally good pace, he’s shown throughout his career that he’s a good creator, able to get himself on the score sheet and be a difference-maker in front of goal. He is an incredibly exciting player for the club to have landed.”
Accam made his international debut with Ghana on January 19, 2015 in the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations, helping Ghana to a runner-up finish at the tournament. In all, Accam has made nine caps for Ghana at the international level, including his most recent appearance against the USA on July 1, 2017.
The Ghanaian forward started his professional career in Sweden in 2012, signing with Ostersunds FK in the Swedish third division. After scoring nine goals in 14 appearances, Accam was transferred to Helsingborgs IF of Sweden’s top division, Allsvenskan, for 2 million SEK, at the time the highest transfer fee for a player from the third division in Swedish soccer history. Between 2012 and 2014 with Helsingborgs IF, Accam made 62 appearances and scored 30 goals.
In the 2012-13 season with Helsingborgs IF, Accam made two UEFA Champions League qualifying appearances and six Europa League group stage appearances.
Transaction: Nashville SC acquired F David Accam from Columbus Crew SC in exchange for $350,000 in General Allocation Money, $100,000 in Targeted Allocation Money. The trade will be made official with MLS on Jan. 1, 2020.
Credit:nashvillesc.com
