Ghana striker Kwesi Appiah has signed for English Championship side on loan from Premiership club Crystal Palace on loan for the rest of the season, GHANAsoccernet.com can exclusively reveal.
This comes just 24 hours after Ghana's leading football news website exclusively revealed that he was on the verge of singing for Reading on an emergency loan deal.
Appiah signed the contract with the Royals on Wednesday but details of deal was revealed on Thursday to beat the 1600GMT emergency loan deadline by the English authorities.
Reading swooped to sign the Ghana hotshot at the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations to boost their attacking options even though the winter transfer window closed two months ago.
The emergency loan window opened the opportunity for Appiah to sign for Reading as it became clear he could not play for Crystal Palace as he was excluded from 25-man squad of Premier League side.
“When I looked at our bench during the game at Charlton it was obvious that without Cox and Yakubu we were light on attacking options,” Reading boss Steve Clarke said.
“When the opportunity arose to bring Kwesi here until the end of the season I felt it was the right thing to do.
“Kwesi is a striker with different attributes to those already at the club.
Appiah hasn’t played for Palace since the start of last season, most recently scoring eight goals in 23 appearances on loan at League Two side Cambridge United.
His last competitive action was at the Africa Cup of Nations when he scored once in four appearances for beaten finalists Ghana.
Appiah impressed at the African Cup of Nations tournament in January, while has been scoring for Palace’s U21 squad in recent weeks.
Reading boss Clarke says the deal with the Ghana international will benefit both parties as Appiah will be looking for playing time to boost his international status.
"He (Appiah) hasn’t had too many opportunities since returning to Palace after a successful African Cup of Nations tournament with Ghana and we are hopeful that he will enhance his growing reputation while helping us to finish the season positively,” Clarke said.
The move by the Ghana striker is meant to boost his form, fitness and readiness for the Black Stars for qualifiers for the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers later this year.
It could prove to a good move for Appiah, who was on loan at Cambridge United earlier this season and a move to the Championship would be the next level of development.
The 24-year-old Ghanain striker has been flitting around the lower leagues since joining London-based Palace in 2012, most recently in a loan spell to Cambridge United, where he scored 6 goals in 19 appearances.
Third tier side Cambridge were seeking to sign the Ghana international on loan again but he opted to extend his contract with Crystal Palace.
“I think Crystal Palace have got plans for me to prove myself at a higher level. At the end of the day, my future at Crystal Palace is the most important thing, so I’ve got the task of proving myself at a higher level,” Appiah said recently.
Appiah is currently with the Ghana national team in France ahead of the friendlies against Mali and Senegal.