Kamaldeen Sulemana joined Atalanta from Southampton earlier this summer for a fee of €17.5m.
The attacker has reunited with Ivan Juric, who managed the Ghana international during his stint at St Mary’s last season.
The 23-year-old was unveiled as a new Atalanta player yesterday and was asked about Juric’s influence on his career. The ex-Southampton player also made it clear that La Dea are one of the best teams in the world.
He said, as relayed by Corriere dello Sport: “The coach? Someone who pushes you to the limit.
“I can learn a lot from him, but I’m here to play with everyone. This is one of the best teams in the world.”
There is a possibility of Atalanta losing Ademola Lookman to Inter Milan, with the Italian press suggesting that Sulemana will replace the Nigerian.
About that, the former Saints player said: “I didn’t come here to be anyone’s replacement. I know.”
While that is probably some over-optimism, Sulemana has shown enough raw ability to replace Lookman. At Southampton last season, he scored only one goal but the Ghanaian displayed glimpses of his pace and acceleration.
His time at St Mary’s will not be remembered too fondly because of his lack of consistency. But next season could be vital for his career, as he will play in the Champions League and Juric has shown in the past that he can bring the most out of pacy attacking players.
