Jonathan Mensah facts for kids
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Jonathan with Columbus Crew in 2017
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date of birth | 13 July 1990 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Accra, Greater Accra, Ghana | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.88 m | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Playing position | Defender | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2004–2006 | Ashanti Gold | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2007–2008 | Ashanti Gold | 29 | (2) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2008–2009 | Free State Stars | 39 | (2) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2010–2011 | Udinese | 0 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2010–2011 | → Granada (loan) | 15 | (1) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2011–2016 | Evian | 49 | (2) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2012–2015 | Evian II | 7 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2016 | Anzhi Makhachkala | 15 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2017–2022 | Columbus Crew | 159 | (6) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2023 | San Jose Earthquakes | 25 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2024 | New England Revolution | 8 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||
| National team‡ | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2009 | Ghana U20 | 9 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2009– | Ghana | 70 | (1) | |||||||||||||||||||
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Honours
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† Appearances (Goals). |
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Jonathan Mensah (born 13 July 1990) is a Ghanaian professional footballer. He is known simply as Jonathan. He plays as a defender. Jonathan has played for many clubs around the world. These include Ashanti Gold, Free State Stars, Granada, Evian, Anzhi Makhachkala, Columbus Crew, San Jose Earthquakes, and New England Revolution. He has also played for the Ghana national team in two World Cups. To avoid confusion with another player named John Mensah, he uses "Jonathan" on his shirt.
Jonathan started his career in Ghana with Ashanti Gold. He then moved to South Africa to play for Free State Stars. Later, he went to Europe, joining Italian club Udinese. He spent time on loan at Granada in Spain. After that, he moved to Ligue 1 club Evian in France. In 2016, he joined Anzhi Makhachkala in Russia. He later moved to the United States to play for Columbus Crew SC.
Jonathan has also had a great international career. He helped Ghana win the 2009 African Youth Championship and the 2009 FIFA U-20 World Cup. He played for the senior Ghana team in the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations, where they finished second. He also played in the 2010 and 2014 World Cups.
Contents
Jonathan Mensah's Club Journey
Jonathan Mensah has played for several football clubs. Each move helped him grow as a player.
Starting in Ghana: Ashanti Gold
Jonathan began his professional football journey at Ashanti Gold. He joined their academy and made his first team debut in the 2007–08 season. He was only 17 years old. In his first season, he played 29 games and scored two goals.
Moving to South Africa: Free State Stars
In September 2008, Jonathan moved to South Africa. He joined Free State Stars. He scored his first goal for the club in January 2009. He played 26 games that year. He later had a trial with a Greek club, but could not sign with them. He returned to Free State Stars. He played 14 more games before getting interest from European clubs.
European Adventure: Udinese and Granada
Jonathan officially joined Italian club Udinese on 1 January 2010. He signed a three-year contract. However, he never played a game for Udinese. Instead, he was immediately loaned to Granada in Spain.
Loan to Granada
Jonathan was loaned to Granada to get more playing time. He first joined them in January 2010. He did not play any matches during this first loan spell. Granada won their league and were promoted.
He was loaned to Granada again for the 2010–11 season. He finally made his debut for Granada in August 2010. He scored his first goal for the club in November. He played 15 games and helped Granada get promoted to La Liga, Spain's top league.
Playing in France: Evian
On 8 July 2011, Jonathan moved to Evian in France. They were a newly promoted team in Ligue 1. He signed a four-year contract. He made his debut in September, but then had an injury.
He played more games in the 2012–13 season. However, injuries and international duties kept him out of the team. He played 12 games that season.
In the 2013–14 season, Jonathan played more regularly. He scored his first goal for Evian in December. He helped Evian avoid being moved down to a lower league. He played 27 games and scored once.
For the 2014–15 season, Jonathan continued to play for Evian. He scored his second goal for the club. However, he faced some challenges. He had injuries and was called up for international duty. He also received a ban from FIFA.
FIFA Ban Explained
In May 2015, Jonathan received a four-month ban from FIFA. This happened because of a misunderstanding when he joined Evian in 2011. FIFA ruled that he was still under contract with Udinese when he signed with Evian. The ban meant he could not play club football for a few months. He was still allowed to play for his country.
After his ban, Jonathan returned to Evian for the 2015–16 season. He played a few more games before leaving the club in February 2016. He played 60 games for Evian over five seasons, scoring two goals.
Russia and MLS: Anzhi Makhachkala and Columbus Crew
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On 23 February 2016, Jonathan signed with Anzhi Makhachkala in Russia. He helped the team avoid being moved to a lower league. He played eight games in his first season. He played 19 games in total for Anzhi before leaving.
On 3 January 2017, Jonathan joined Major League Soccer club Columbus Crew in the United States. He became an important player for the team. He made his debut in March and scored his first goal in August. He played 31 games in his first season, scoring two goals.
Jonathan became the captain of Columbus Crew before the 2020 season. He played every minute of every game that year. He led the club to win the MLS Cup, their first trophy in 12 years. He was the first African player to captain a team to an MLS Cup victory. In 2021, he scored 4 goals for the Crew.
Later Career: San Jose and New England
On 10 February 2023, Jonathan moved to the San Jose Earthquakes. He played 25 games for them.
On 4 January 2024, he joined New England Revolution as a free agent. He reunited with his former coach, Caleb Porter.
Jonathan Mensah's International Career
Jonathan has proudly represented his country, Ghana, at different levels.
Youth Success and Senior Debut
Jonathan first played for the Ghana U20s in 2009. He helped them win the 2009 African Youth Championship. In the final, he made a key save to help Ghana win 2–0.
He then played in the 2009 FIFA U-20 World Cup. Ghana won this tournament, beating Brazil in a penalty shootout. Jonathan played in six of the seven matches.
Thanks to his youth performances, Jonathan was called up to the Ghana senior team. He made his debut in May 2009.
World Cup Appearances
Jonathan was part of the Ghana squad for the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations. Ghana finished second in this tournament. He then earned a spot in the squad for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. He played in two group games and helped Ghana reach the quarter-finals.
He scored his first goal for Ghana in a friendly game against Togo in 2011. He also played in the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations and the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations.
In 2014, Jonathan was named in Ghana's squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. He started every match for Ghana at the tournament.
AFCON Finals and Captaincy
Jonathan played every minute of Ghana's 2015 Africa Cup of Nations campaign. Ghana reached the final but lost in a penalty shootout to Ivory Coast. Jonathan scored his penalty kick.
He also played in the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations. Ghana finished fourth in that tournament.
Jonathan played five times during the qualification games for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. He wore the captain's armband for Ghana for the first time in a game against Congo in September 2017. Ghana won that game 5–1.
Jonathan Mensah's Life Off the Field
Jonathan is known for his strong beliefs and his charity work.
Faith and Friends
Jonathan is a very religious Christian. He reads from the Psalms before every game. He is good friends with other Christian footballers like Christian Atsu and Odion Ighalo.
Helping Others: The Jonathan Mensah Foundation
In July 2013, Jonathan started his own charity, the Jonathan Mensah Foundation. Its goal is to help less fortunate institutions and orphanages in Ghana. The foundation has helped clean up and donate to places like the Royal Seed Home and Dzorwulu Special School.
In 2017, Jonathan was named the Columbus Crew Humanitarian of the Year. This was for his great work with his charity and his volunteering in the Columbus community.
Career statistics
Club
| Club | Season | League | National Cup | League Cup | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| AshantiGold | 2007–08 | Ghana Premier League | 29 | 2 | 0 | 0 | – | 0 | 0 | – | 29 | 2 | ||
| Free State Stars | 2008–09 | Premier Soccer League | 26 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 0 | 0 | 26 | 1 | |
| 2009–10 | 13 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 0 | 0 | 14 | 1 | |||
| Total | 39 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 40 | 2 | ||
| Granada (loan) | 2009–10 | Segunda División B | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2010–11 | Segunda División | 15 | 1 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 0 | 0 | 15 | 1 | |||
| Total | 15 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 1 | ||
| Evian | 2011–12 | Ligue 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 1 | 0 | ||
| 2012–13 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 6 | 0 | ||||
| 2013–14 | 26 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | – | 27 | 1 | ||||
| 2014–15 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | – | 12 | 1 | ||||
| 2015–16 | Ligue 2 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 7 | 0 | |||
| Total | 49 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 53 | 2 | ||
| Evian II | 2012–13 | National 3 | 6 | 0 | – | – | – | – | 6 | 0 | ||||
| 2015–16 | 1 | 0 | – | – | – | – | 1 | 0 | ||||||
| Total | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | ||
| Anzhi Makhachkala | 2015–16 | Russian Premier League | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 2 | 0 | 8 | 0 | ||
| 2016–17 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 0 | – | – | – | 11 | 0 | |||||
| Total | 15 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 19 | 0 | ||
| Columbus Crew | 2017 | MLS | 26 | 2 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 5 | 0 | 31 | 2 | ||
| 2018 | 27 | 1 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 3 | 0 | 30 | 1 | ||||
| 2019 | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | – | 24 | 0 | |||||
| 2020 | 23 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | 4 | 0 | 28 | 0 | |||
| 2021 | 29 | 2 | 0 | 0 | – | 3 | 2 | – | 32 | 4 | ||||
| 2022 | 30 | 2 | 0 | 0 | – | – | – | 30 | 2 | |||||
| Total | 159 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 13 | 1 | 175 | 9 | ||
| Career total | 313 | 14 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 15 | 1 | 338 | 16 | ||
International
| Ghana | ||
| Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 1 | 0 |
| 2010 | 9 | 0 |
| 2011 | 6 | 1 |
| 2012 | 4 | 0 |
| 2013 | 7 | 0 |
| 2014 | 11 | 0 |
| 2015 | 11 | 0 |
| 2016 | 6 | 0 |
| 2017 | 5 | 0 |
| 2018 | 1 | 0 |
| 2019 | 4 | 0 |
| 2021 | 3 | 0 |
| 2022 | 1 | 0 |
| Total | 69 | 1 |
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8 February 2011 | Bosuilstadion, Antwerp, Belgium |  Togo |
2–1 | 4–1 | Friendly |
Honours and Awards
Jonathan Mensah has won many awards and championships throughout his career.
Granada
- Segunda División B: 2009–10
- La Liga play-offs: 2011
Columbus Crew
- MLS Cup: 2020
- Campeones Cup: 2021
Ghana U20
- FIFA U-20 World Cup: 2009
- African Youth Championship: 2009
Individual Awards
- Columbus Crew SC Humanitarian of the Year: 2017
- Columbus Crew SC Defender of the Year: 2018, 2019, 2020
- MLS Best XI: 2020
Images for kids
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Jonathan was with Evian for all four top-flight seasons in the club's history
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Jonathan is one of three Ghanaian players to have appeared for Anzhi, alongside Emmanuel Osei Kuffour and Kwadwo Poku
See also
In Spanish: Jonathan Mensah para niños
