Ghana striker Felix Afena-Gyan says Jose Mourinho made him who is, describing the AS Roma manager as his second father.
Afena-Gyan won the trust of Mourinho during his time in Rome, with the Portuguese giving him his senior debut in October 2021 against Cagliari.
The teenager went on to make a massive impact in Serie A after netting a double as Roma beat Genoa 2-0 a month later.
He also became a part of the first team and made 20 appearances in all competitions, while helping Roma to win the Europa Conference League.
Afena-Gyan secured a transfer from Roma to newly-promoted Cremonese last summer but still has fond memories of his time under Mourinho.
“Mourinho is my second father. He made me who I am today,” the 19-year-old told La Gazzeta Dello Sport, as quoted by 3Sports.
Meanwhile, Afena-Gyan was the hero as Cremonese knocked Napoli out of the Coppa Italia.
Cremonese qualified for the quarter-finals of the cup competition after defeating Napoli on penalties on Tuesday evening.
The visitors rose into an early lead, thanks to Charles Pickel’s brilliant finish in the 18th minute after being set up by David Okereke.
However, quick-fire goals from Juan Jesus and Giovanni Simeone saw Napoli turn the game around and take a 2-1 lead into the halftime break.
Afena-Gyan replaced Okereke in the 65th minute and went on to grab a late equaliser to send the game into extra time.
The 19-year-old striker then scored the winning penalty as Cremonese run out as 5-4 winners in the shootout against the Setie A leaders.
“A fantastic team effort tonight. Congratulations @USCremonese for qualifying to the next stage of the #CoppaItalia. If we believe, we can achieve,” he later wrote on Twitter.