Egyptian powerhouse Al Ahly have reached a deal with Portuguese top-flight side Rio Ave over the signing of Ghanaian forward Abdul Aziz Yakubu for a fee of around €2,5 million, with the player putting pen-to-paper on a four-and-a-half-year deal.
This season, Aziz has scored six goals and provided three assists in the Liga Portugal, incuding a famous brace against FC Porto which saw the club win 3-1 at home last August.
His six league goals see him sit fifth on the scoring charts, just three goals behind Porto star Mehdi Taremi and Benfica prodigy Gonçalo Ramos.
Moreover, the player didn’t miss a single game in their league campaign, scoring and assisting against the likes of Sporting Braga and Benfica.
He also scored further two goals in the League Cup against Farense, taking up his tally to eight goals and three assists in 15 games across all competitions.
The 24-year-old has been playing in Portugal since 2016, having moved to Vizela’s youth ranks from Ghanaian club Charity Stars, before being promoted to the senior team just one year later.
In August of 2018, Aziz was loaned out to Vitória de Guimarães, who signed him permanently a year later, but the forward player mainly for their B team for whom he scored 11 goals in 28 games.
A loan spell at Estoril Praia saw Aziz break into the scene after scoring 15 goals to help them win the Liga Portugal 2 title and reach the semi-finals of the Portuguese Cup.
Following his return to his parent club, Aziz was loaned out once again to Rio Ave, who he also helped win the Liga Portugal 2 title and earn promotion to the top tier with 14 goals.
Impressing at the Estádio dos Arcos, Rio Ave made the loan deal permanent just last summer when they splashed the cash and paid €1 million, the club’s second-most expensive signing.
Despite being their top scorer this season, Rio Ave decided to cash in on Aziz and invest in their squad as they sit in a respectable seventh place on the league table.
