Dutch and Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum has shed light on why he dropped his Ghanaian name.
Wijnaldum is originally of Surinamese heritage and at a point in his life, bore a Ghanaian surname – Boateng.
According to the former PSV Eindhoven and Liverpool attacker, he took on the name when his mum remarried a Ghanaian but had to drop the name when the marriage collapsed.
“I want to put on record that I am now Georginio Wijnaldum, not Georginio Boateng, in fact, I have been known as George Wijnaldum for four years now,” he stated as quoted by GOAL.
He added: “Boateng was the name of my former stepfather who is related to retired Dutch footballer of Ghanaian origin George Boateng.”
“My stepfather gave his surname to me but after he divorced my mother I got the Boateng off my name and took my mother’s name Wijnaldum as my surname.”
Wijnaldum stated in no uncertain terms: “My mother and my original father are Surinamese so people should get it clear.”
The 31-year-old has been capped 86 times by the Dutch national team, scoring 26 goals in the process for the three-time World Cup losing finalists.
