Ghanaian youngster Jesurun Rak-Sakyi declared his first taste of senior football in the 2021/22 season at Crystal Palace 'crazy'.
The 19-year-old made his first start for Palace in their 1-0 win over Manchester United on the final day of the 2021/22 English Premier League season.
Rak-Sakyi, who made his club debut in the first game of the season when he was brought on as a substitute during the 3-0 loss against Chelsea lasted for 67 minutes before he was replaced by Cheikhou Kouyaté.
“I was at Chelsea from the age of eight to 16,” he tells the Official Crystal Palace Podcast. “I wasn’t able to get a scholar there.
“It was really tough. As a kid all you know is Chelsea, Chelsea, Chelsea. To be let go and then to find something new is really tough.
“Palace took me in. They had a plan for me and that was really good for me and my family to hear, that they would look after me and develop.”
Rak-Sakyi has been shortlisted for Premier League 2 Player of the Season following his impressive display for Crystal Palace's Under-23 team.
He propelled Palace to finish 5th in the Premier League 2 Division 1, their first campaign in the top-flight of Academy football, winning February’s PL2 Player of the Month award.
He scored incredible 18 goals from 25 appearances throughout 2021/22, making him joint-top scorer with Manchester City’s James McAtee.
He collected the Player of the Season award from Under-23s assistant manager Darren Powell at the club’s free-to-attend awards night.
Though Rak-Sakyi is also eligible to represent Ghana through his parents, he accepted a call-up to the England U20 team in September 2021 to replace an injured Anthony Gordon.