By Sulayman Bah
Spaghetti-legged but not starved of energy, the former Gamtel FC man is epitome of hard work pays off. Running into defences and poking his head or limbs even if he risked catching boots of aggressive defenders, are traits that have helped his transition into the lethal finisher he is today.
Togo will get to learn of what is all the buzz about this striker who’s only a year old into professional football.
Morocco –albeit a U-23 side – and Central African Republic can better tell of the threat the 23-year –old poses with his back to the goalpost. His goals against the Atlas Lions in that game, the first a curly-like effort after slaloming his marker and the second a cool slot from the spot-kick are a hallmark of his playing style.
Ceesay doesn’t wear the demeanour of the sort of flamboyance shown by Brazil’s Ronaldo whose biggest weapon was leaving defenders in awe and star-struck with bamboozling maneuvers.
For this Gambian, decent inter-changes of passes, darting runs packed with pace coupled with daring improbable ambitious out-of-the-box shots –to a large extent – flips the magic.
His goal celebration against Algeria, running to the fans having earned Gambia an equaliser carried with it so much message.
After sneaking in before his marker to coolly tap Lamin’s Jallow cross to the Desert Foxes’ net, he ran arms outstretched, beating his chess amid uproarious fanfare. That audacity served to point one thing –I’m equally good if not better to anyone who cares to listen.
Many went bonkers over Belgian gaffer Tom Saintfiet’s ‘effrontery’ to pick Ceesay ahead of Bubacarr Trawally – another star who is yet to score for the Scorpions but whose goal prowess at club level is remarkably rising unabated.
True, he did not pull off the 15-league goals Steve managed the previous season which fete the Bundung-born the highest scoring African in the Chinese Super League, Assan however felt, question marks regarding his selection by the doubting Thomases were a severe affront over what he can offer to the national team.
So the fires in him raged making the tie against Algeria his moment to rise to the billing and not only serve a flavour of him never before witnessed by home fans but also force his avalanche of doubters to gag up.
There certainly was a cause for him to prove his worth especially when an enterprising Musa Barrow of the Serie A, was prompted to watch proceedings from the bench while a teammate, plucked from the not so fanciful Swiss Super League, was preferred in the Scorpions’ front-line.
The result? The towering goal-getter did not leave the forty or so thousand supporters that flocked to the creaking Independence Stadium disenchanted, ensuring a share of the spoils against table-topping Algeria.
Togo would have by now laid down a devastating strategy on how to mute him when Gambia travels out to Lome for the first of a double-legged fixture as the fight to secure a place in the Cameroon 2019 Africa Cup of Nations group stage shapes up.
His exploits offers him guaranteed place to make his fourth straight start for the Scorpions.
Meaning, one of either Bubacarr Trawally or Ali Sowe will be requiring an extraordinary doze of luck to dispatch Ceesay off the current height he’s perched on ahead of the Togo tie this month.
