Dominic Solanke is on a mission to show Liverpool how wrong they were to sell him more than three years ago.
The centre-forward left Anfield in January 2019 with Bournemouth forking out a fee reported to be in the region of £19million. Many scoffed at the money spent, given the fact he had scored just one senior goal in English football up until that point. Plenty more mocked the transfer fee even further as his wait for a first Cherries goal went on. He went a staggering 12 months before scoring, in an FA Cup tie, whilst his wait for a maiden Premier League goal took the best part of 18 months.
One of the few benefits to Bournemouth's relegation in 2020 was that it allowed Solanke to rediscover that scoring touch in the Championship.
They fell short in the play-offs in 2020-21 but Solanke had been pivotal to their cause, registering 15 goals in 42 league outings.
The best was to come last season though, with a fully confident Solanke one of the hottest strikers in England. He notched 29 goals as he featured in every single game, playing a crucial role as Scott Parker's side won automatic promotion. Were it not for the quite frankly ridiculous scoring feat of Fulham's Aleksandar Mitrovic (who bagged a record-setting 42 goals), then Solanke would have been toasting a golden boot award.
Indeed, his tally last season would have seen him finish top of the pile in seven of the last eight campaigns.
How many Premier League goals will Solanke score this term? Let us know here
Now revitalised and full of the confidence that only comes from finding the back of the net on a regular basis, Solanke is preparing to attack the Premier League once more. This weekend sees Bournemouth welcome Aston Villa in their first match in the competition since a cruel final day relegation two years ago.
Ironically, it was Villa who stayed up at the expense of the Cherries that season. A Jack Grealish goal secured the point they required on the final day at West Ham, rendering Bournemouth's impressive win away at Everton meaningless.
You have to go back two-and-a-half years since Bournemouth fans last saw their side win a top flight game in the flesh - and ironically that too was against Villa. Solanke was an unused sub that day but, injury permitting, will be leading the line against Steven Gerrard's side for the curtain-raiser.
He is now the star man in Parker's side and evidence of that was highlighted earlier this week when he signed a contract extension at the club until 2026.
Speaking to Goal last season he said his mission is to show he is a different and more potent player than the last time he was in the top flight: "When we got relegated, I saw this as an opportunity to get my confidence back, play week in, week out, and get that flow back. I think that’s what I’m doing now and I’m looking to keep progressing.
"I want to get back to the Premier League and prove that I can be a regular goalscorer there. That’s the main thing I want to achieve right now. My confidence is a lot different to how it was back then. I’m a lot older and stronger now, so that will definitely help me. I feel a lot more complete."
