Darryl Bakola has completed a permanent move from Olympique Marseille to Serie A side US Sassuolo in a deal worth €10.00m, leaving France to begin his first spell abroad with the Italian club. The transfer is confirmed, with the attacking midfielder’s switch from Ligue 1 to Italy’s top flight registered on 2026-02-02. His new contract with Sassuolo currently runs until an undisclosed expiry date, with no further extension details provided.
The 18-year-old attacking midfielder arrives in Emilia-Romagna with a current market value of €4.00m, meaning Sassuolo have invested a fee significantly above his latest valuation to secure his services. The move sees Bakola depart Marseille’s senior squad less than two years after stepping up from the club’s U19 side, and marks the first time he will compete outside France after a youth and early professional career entirely built in his home country.
Born in Clichy on 30 Nov 2007, Bakola represents both France and Congo at nationality level and is listed primarily as an attacking midfielder who operates through the middle. Standing at 1.78 m and preferring his right foot, he now joins a Sassuolo side competing in Serie A, shifting from the French Ligue 1 environment that has shaped his recent development. While his new club and contract are confirmed, there is no indication in the data of any release clauses or options that could make him a free agent at an earlier stage.
Bakola’s pathway to this move has been steady and linear through French football. He progressed from Racing Club de France Youth to Red Star FC’s youth setup in 2020, before joining Olympique Marseille U17 in 2022. A promotion to Marseille’s U19 side followed in 2023, and by 2024 he had earned a place in the first-team squad of the Ligue 1 club. Each step up the ladder kept him within France’s system until Sassuolo’s move took him to Italy.
His market value has risen sharply over the past year, tracking his emergence in Marseille’s structure. In March 2025 he was valued at €200,000, a figure that remained unchanged in June before jumping to €1.00m in October 2025 and then quadrupling to €4.00m by mid-December 2025. Sassuolo’s decision to pay €10.00m reflects that rapid appreciation and their belief in his potential ceiling, even if the latest official valuation still lags behind the final transfer fee.
The switch also changes the competitive landscape for Bakola. He moves from a Marseille side playing in Ligue 1 to Sassuolo in Serie A, exchanging familiar French surroundings for a new tactical and cultural environment in Italy. From here, his next steps will be measured not just in market value but in minutes, performances and adaptation to the demands of Italian football. How he handles that transition will go a long way toward defining his reputation and long-term trajectory at the highest level.
