Sporting KC signs Ghanaian midfielder and former first-round pick Emmanuel Appiah

Sporting Kansas City supplemented its midfield Tuesday, signing Ghanaian player Emmanuel Appiah to a contract. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.

The Colorado Rapids selected Appiah, 22, with the No. 15 pick in the 2016 MLS SuperDraft in January. The two sides parted ways on June 30.

Appiah was unable to crack the first-team roster in Colorado. Instead, he played two matches on loan with USL’s Charlotte Independence. He has never appeared in an MLS match.

“Emmanuel is a player who we scouted in college and watched closely at the (MLS) combine,” Sporting Kansas City coach Peter Vermes said in a news release. “He is a young midfielder who possesses a lot of qualities that our staff likes, and we look forward to integrating him into our system.”

Appiah was born in Ghana but raised in Ohio. He spent five years playing for the University of Cincinnati, where he scored seven goals and had 13 assists.

This story was originally published July 12, 2016 at 2:03 PM with the headline "Sporting KC signs Ghanaian midfielder and former first-round pick Emmanuel Appiah."