Hamed Traorè admits he will forever be ‘indebted to Sassuolo‘ but has agreed to join Bournemouth to play in the Premier League like his idols Didier Drogba and Yaya Touré.
The 22-year-old joined the Cherries on the deadline day. It’s an initial loan deal with an obligation to buy and the transfer package is worth €30m, as confirmed by Sassuolo director Giovanni Carnevali on Tuesday.
“When I was growing up in Ivory Coast, my idols were Didier Drogba at Chelsea and Yaya Touré at Manchester City. Everyone in my country followed them and wanted to be like them,” Traoré told Burnemouth’s official website in his first interview for his new club.
“Max Gradel is a teammate with Ivory Coast and I know he played for Bournemouth. Whenever I’m with him, he gives me advice and he always helps the youngsters and is a very good man.”
Traoré scored 18 goals in 140 appearances in Serie A for Empoli and Sassuolo and his contract at the Mapei Stadium expired in June 2024, which is one of the reasons why the Neroverdi agreed to sell in January.
“From what I’ve seen from afar, I think the Premier League will have different levels of intensity than Serie A,” explained Traoré.
“The Italian league is very tactical and schematic in the approach within games. From what I’ve seen of the Premier League, it’s built on intensity and that’s what really excites me about coming here.
“I arrived at Sassuolo as a boy and I’ve left as a man. I’m very fond of the club and the fans and have had a lot of interaction with them on social media. The club played a huge part in my career and I will forever be indebted to them for that.”
The Premier League side pounced on the Ivory Coast international after Nicolò Zaniolo rejected their offer. The Italy international eventually changes his mind on Monday night, but Bournemouth had already finalised the deal to get Traoré.