TORONTO – Randy Edwini-Bonsu is finally home.

The fleet-footed forward made Edmonton his home at the age of 12, moving from Ghana, the place of his birth. He came through the youth system in Alberta, but left for French club FC Metz in 2007, then to Vancouver, Finland, and, lastly, Germany. Throughout that time, and with several transfers along the way, Edwini-Bonsu had yet to don an Edmonton shirt.

Until now, that is.

Edwini-Bonsu was announced as one of the Eddies’ first two signings last November. The 28-year-old returns from his European adventures with plenty of experience, yes – but he’s also got some wisdom he’d like to impart on the next generation, too.

“I never thought I would play professional soccer,” Edwini-Bonsu told CanPL.ca. “When I was young, people would say you’re fast, but I never thought I would get the opportunity at 15 to go to France and play. That’s was crazy. To learn overseas was something special.”

Having enjoyed tenures at clubs like Eintracht Braunchweig, Stuttgart Kickers, VfR Aalen, and FC Homburg, Edwini-Bonsu took a different tact when joining Tennis Borussia Berlin for the 2017-18 season.

“At my last contract, I went to a team just to learn from the coach, Thomas Brdaric, to learn the stuff that was missing in my game, so I could come home and bring my experience to the kids,” Edwini-Bonsu explained.

“That is something I will never forget. I went to Europe to make a living, I enjoyed it, but now to bring all that knowledge back home and play in my prime, is something special. I pray to God I’m healthy and show what I learned over there.”

What made Brdaric different from previous coaches was the position he played during his career with Fortuna Koln, Bayer Leverkusen, Hannover 96, and VfL Wolfsburg.

“Every coach I’d had was a defender or midfielder,” Edwini-Bonsu said. “To have a striker as a coach, I learned so many tricks, so many smart runs. I needed it. I was missing it in my game. I spent a year with him and I wanted to come home after that.”

Those lessons, coupled with speed to compliment his attacking mindset, made Edwini-Bonsu the perfect player for Edmonton head coach Jeff Paulus, who was looking to build his CPL squad on the base of exactly those traits.

“It’ fantastic,” Paulus said, when asked about bringing Edwini-Bonsu coming home. “He’s key to what we wanted to accomplish, especially being an Edmontonian. To bring him home to play in front of his family and friends, with his experience overseas, is incredible.

“He’s made it to the 2. Bundesliga because of his qualities as a footballer,” Paulus continued. “For us to play the type of football that we want to play, a player like Randy was definitely one that we were after. The bonus is he was available and wanted to come home. He’s a very good pick up for us.”

Edwini-Bonsu is now something of a grizzled veteran compared to some of the fresh-faced footballers at the Eddies. He’s still adjusting to his new role of mentor, too.

“This is the only team I’ve been on that I’m one of the oldest. And I’m only 28, I’m not that old,” Edwini-Bonsu said, with a laugh. “It’s not fun.”

It has required a measure of diplomacy … and a shift of mindset.

“In Germany, you get yelled at on the field. You know it’s business, nothing personal. But here people take things differently,” explained the forward. “I yelled at a kid the other day and I felt bad. I’m not used to that.

“I’m trying to help them because I never had that kind of person in my life. I’m willing, but at the same time it makes me feel very old. It’s strange.”

Not that he entirely minds being the elder statesman.

“It’s positive. We have to go young,” Edwini-Bonsu stressed. “The younger players need a chance to play, to develop the league properly. Of course, there will be older players with experience, but you need a younger core.

“When we’re out of there, they’re going to have that experience to make the league even better. That’s the beautiful thing about this league: young Canadians are getting a chance to play, instead of dreaming about going to Europe, you have this right here.”