Ephraim Yeboah has been thankful for friendly faces to help him settle following his move north to Dunfermline Athletic.
But he admits his switch from Bristol City pales into insignificance when compared to his family’s ‘scary’ decision to leave Italy when he was just eight.
Born in Montirone in northern Italy, Yeboah’s Ghanaian parents opted for a new life in England a decade ago.
For a kid of his age, the promising striker confesses it was a daunting change.
However, the 18-year-old now looks back and realises it was the best thing for him and the rest of his family.
“It was pretty scary, to be fair,” Yeboah told Courier Sport of their move to Bristol. “I know I was only young, but I thought it would be the end of the world.
“But I think it’s probably one of the best things my family’s ever done for me and my sister as well.
“At the time, I didn’t see it, but I’m so grateful for my parents that they’ve done that.
“I think there’s more opportunities here in the UK, football-wise, and just opportunity-wise as well for them.
“It just gave them the best shot at life and I’m just grateful, honestly.
‘It was just a fresh start’
“They moved for work, there were more work opportunities here.
“And I think they thought it would be the best idea to move for me and my sister as well, just to get out of an area with loads of distractions and stuff.
“It was just a fresh start, basically. And it’s turning out pretty good, I guess!”
Yeboah has made an impressive impact at Dunfermline since joining on loan from Bristol City on the last day of January.
Since then, he has made his debut in a Fife derby win over Raith Rovers, played in a Challenge Cup final and against Aberdeen at Pittodrie, and managed back-to-back league starts.
It has been a bit of a whirlwind for the teenager, whose former Bristol City team-mate Omar Taylor-Clarke followed him to Fife in the midst of a flurry of youthful arrivals at East End Park.
“It’s a pretty young squad,” he said ahead of Tuesday’s crucial trip to face Hamilton Accies. “It’s not too old, but it makes people more relatable.
“I think people understand where my head’s at a bit more because most of the people in the club or the new boys that have come in have been young and are English.
“They’ve had to do the move as well, obviously.
“Omar, who I was playing with at Bristol, has come up as well and I think that’s made me feel more at ease and relieved the pressure a little bit.
“Because moving all the way to Scotland was definitely difficult. Being seven or eight hours from my family is not easy, but the boys have made it much easier.”
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