One goal. One mission. Ghana Native and defender Manu Duah dreamed of becoming a professional soccer player one day. That day came Friday, December 20, 2023, when Duah was selected as the number one pick in the Major League Soccer (MLS) SuperDraft 2025 for the San Diego Football Club.
The University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) defender made history by being the first-ever draft pick for SDFC. The Gaucho started all 14 games for UCSB and previously starred in MLS NEXT, the most elite platform for youth player development in North America, for Santa Barbara Soccer Club.
“It was a really exciting day for me so far, most of my life and I was happy to get to San Diego,” said Duah. “I always wanted to come here. I didn't want to go to a different place.”
The Ghanian fell in love with soccer when he was a kid. He shared how he played with his father and through him he began to love the sport.
“He was the only one in my family who really liked soccer and my brothers played, but they were not really interested,” added the defender.
Duah was a part of the New Life Academy in Ghana. Through his experiences he was able to become the person he is today. With the Chrome and Azul launching San Diego FC’s Right to Dream Academy, Duah had advice for the founding class.
“I will always say they should take both every single time, like go to school and play soccer. I know most of us, we love soccer more than school, but it's helpful a lot to go to school and play soccer,” shared Duah.
On San Diego FC’s Official Podcast, the Ghanian shared in July’s episode how he mainly focused on soccer when he was part of the Academy. Now that he’s in San Diego, he shared how he understands school is equally important or more when it comes to a student-athlete's development.
The defender made his SDFC and MLS debut on June 25 against the Vancouver Whitecaps FC in the 89th minute. Since making his first appearance, Duah has played 13 matches and started in 11 regular season matches. Duah also became one of the first-two SDFC players to be named to the MLS 22 Under 22, along with defender Luca Bombino.
“Yoeri (SDFC’s Head of Physical Performance) walked over and he pointed, I was like me? I was like, oh yeah, it's time. I was always ready and prepared for the moment that my number got called so being called, I was super excited to go in and have my debut,” said Duah. “That game I didn't play that much, but it felt like I played a lot because I was super excited that I finally got the chance to expose myself.”
Duah was named to MLS Team of the Matchday 27 presented by Audi for his outstanding performance against Nashville SC. The defender helped in preventing Nashville from finding the back of the net and helped ensure a 1-0 victory back on July 27.
When the defender isn’t on the field, he enjoys teasing his friends and gaming.
“The Manu outside the field is a really energetic person who always wants to hang out with friends. Do something, have fun, I like teasing friends. I really tease my friends,” explained Duah. “I always want to be with friends and most of the time I just talk with other friends who are not here, but through gaming, so I like gaming a lot because I can have time to just do something with my friends outside of soccer.”
As SDFC’s inaugural season nears to an end, fans can still watch Duah and the Club at our Official Watch Party Crawl on Third Ave in Chula Vista on Saturday, October 18 from 4 – 8 PM by RSVP here, but it doesn’t end there! Fans can catch the squad in the Audi 2025 MLS Cup Playoffs!
Single match tickets for Round One Best-of-3 are on sale now and you can purchase Match One, presented by Sharp HealthCare here! To take advantage of the best value, SDFC is also offering a Round One Playoffs Bundle, which includes both matches. Don’t miss being a part of history, Show Up for San Diego and buy your tickets before it’s too late! It’s Our Time. All In for San Diego.
