WHILE Hibernian's interest in Derek Riordan was well known, their signing of Sol Bamba on transfer deadline day came as a surprise – not least to the player himself. The 23-year-old central defender had hoped for some time to get a move away from Dunfermline Athletic, but had thought his chance was gone, for this transfer window at least, when Watford decided not to follow up their initial interest.
Now, after an enjoyable experience at the Olympic Games where he was a member of the Ivory Coast side which exceeded expectations by reaching the quarter-finals, he has a chance to reacquaint himself with the SPL. He knows he cannot expect an automat
ic place in the Hibs team, but is willing to work hard to force his way into Mixu Paatelainen's plans.
"I'm happy, and very surprised as well, because I didn't know I was going to come here," Bamba said at Easter Road yesterday. "It's a good surprise.
"I was very disappointed when I came back from China and Watford said they weren't going to take me. But that's behind me now, and I'm just looking forward.
"It was an easy decision to come here, because it's a big club. The team's play is very good – we just need one or two good results to move forward.
"I'm still young, and I'm going to try my best to play every game. I'm going to work hard every day in training."
Bamba explained that he consulted his Dunfermline team-mate Stephen Glass, a former Hibs player, before deciding on the move. "I spoke to Stephen. He said to me go, because it's a big club and a good club as well. The facilities are very good. I'm very impressed."
Born in France, Bamba was a reserve player with Paris St Germain for two seasons before joining Dunfermline in the summer of 2006. His committed style of play quickly won the supporters over, but his arrival coincided with a slump in the club's fortunes and they were relegated from the SPL at the end of that season.
"I wanted to leave when we went down," he recalled. "The manager, Stephen Kenny, wanted me to stay one more year, because he thought we'd get promoted straight away.
"I thought we were going to get promoted that first year as well, but we got off to a bad start. And when we didn't go up I wanted to leave again."
Having finally got his move, Bamba is eager to make his mark, but whether he will be allowed to do so in Hibs' next game a week on Saturday remains to be seen. "He's ready to come straight in," Paatelainen, the Hibs manager, said.
"Obviously our centre-halves have done really well. I will think about it when the Dundee United game comes around."
The full article contains 483 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
