Dominic Solanke joins Bournemouth

    After a year and a half spent in Liverpool, Dominic Solanke, the 20-year old forward of Nigerian descent, has joined the Premiership side Bournemouth on a long-term contract. The exact transfer fee has not been disclosed but it’s estimated Liverpool will cash in around £20 million.

    Solanke was born in Reading, UK, a town just outside London. His father is Nigerian while his mother is English. He started playing football for Chelsea at an early age, leading to him signing his first professional contract with Chelsea in 2014. In October of 2014, he was named in the 18-man squad for the first time. A few days later he was also in the team for the UEFA Champions League (UCL) match against NK Maribor, the youngest ever player to play in the UCL for Chelsea.

    In the 2014/15 season, Solanke scored 41 goals for the Chelsea U-21 squad which won him the Chelsea Academy player of the year award at the end of the season.

    For the 2015/16 season, he played for the Dutch side Vitesse. He managed to score seven goals in 25 matches for the team. The season after, he didn’t go out on loan but didn’t play much either.

    Dominic Solanke - Vlad1988 / Shutterstock.com

    Dominic Solanke – Vlad1988 / Shutterstock.com

    In July 2017, the youngster joined Liverpool. He’s had 27 appearances for the club, scoring a single goal, against Brighton, in the last match of the 2017/18 Premiership season.

    Internationally, he has played for England in all the junior squads. He won the 2014 UEFA Under-17 European Championship with the Lions, and shared a top scorer title, scoring four goals in four matches.

    Then, three years later, Solankeplayed for the Under-20 England team in the 2017 FIFA Under-20 World Cup. England beat Venezuela in the final to take the title. Dominic Solanke won the Golden Ball after being voted the Player of the tournament. He has appeared once for the Three Lions senior squad.

    The young England attacker has shown a lot of potential so far, maybe untapped potential which Bournemouth coach Eddie Howe will be looking to unlock. This is a big move for Solanke and he will certainly get some playing time to show what he’s got. He won’t get to play until February though when he is expected to recover from an injury he sustained while in Liverpool.

    Incidentally, he is not the only Liverpool player to join Bournemouth this month. Nathaniel Clyne will also play for Bournemouth, on loan until the end of the season as he is coming back from a long-term injury. Jordon Ibe, a former Liverpool player will make him and Solanke welcome in their new team.