Barnsley have completed the signing of defender Bambo Diaby from Belgian club KSC Lokeren. Diaby, 21, joins the Yorkshire outfit on a four-year deal after the Tykes paid an undisclosed fee for the Senegal-born player.
Barnsley Sign Bambo Diaby
??️ | We are delighted to announce Bambo Diaby has joined Barnsley Football Club, from KSC Lokeren! #YouReds | #WelcomeDiaby pic.twitter.com/D72S0n1AIX
— Barnsley FC (@BarnsleyFC) July 5, 2019
Career So Far
Despite being born in Senegal, Diaby grew up in Spain after moving to Catalonia at the age of four. Therefore, his entire youth career occurred in Spain, and he made his senior debut at Cornella in 2016.
That turned out to be his only appearance for Cornella before moving to Italian side Sampdoria. He found success hard to come by there, though, and spent time out on loan at Mantova, Peralada and Girona. His spell at Peralada was by far the most successful, contributing four goals in 34 appearances.
Diaby moved to Belgium when Lokeren sealed his signing, but he spent just one season at the club, scoring once in 18 appearances.
What They Said
Speaking to the club website, Diaby said: “I know it’s a new division for me and the team, but when I saw the team in the dressing room, the one thing that was very important is that the team was together.
“Everyone is young but smiling and enjoying themselves and that’s important for a good season. The first impression I got is that he’s [Daniel Stendel] an exciting coach and I like this because he will encourage you even if you make a mistake. When I was speaking to him, he said he needs my power and that makes me happy.”
Barnsley co-chairman Paul Conway added: “We are very pleased to welcome Bambo, who has deep experience at centre-back at a high level, at a young age. As promised, we are aggressively reinvesting the proceeds from the sale of Ethan Pinnock and have acquired three centre-backs in three days, since his departure.
“We are really excited for Bambo to join Mads Andersen, Toby Sibbick and Aapo Halme to strengthen our central defensive areas.”
Main Photo
