Red-hot teen 'ready to suffer'

Bournemouth starlet Eli Junior Kroupi may have already put a difficult start to Premier League life behind him, but the 19-year-old said he knows that he will have to "work hard" to make a success of his time in England.

The Brittany-born, childhood Liverpool fan made his Bournemouth debut on a season-opening trip to Anfield for a clash with the champion in August.

"I was like a kid living in a dream," Kroupi said. "It was really wonderful for me, and for my parents, too."

He played just one minute as a substitute.

After manager Andoni Iraola gave the teenager a paltry 11 minutes in total over the next four league matches, Kroupi said that he "even thought about leaving".

A conversation with his father — ex-Cote d'Ivoire international Eli Kroupi — convinced the teenager to dig in to realize his dream.

"Running away from a problem wasn't the right solution," he said. "My father encouraged me to stay and work twice as hard."

Within a month, the forward had scored four goals in three matches against Leeds, FA Cup winner Crystal Palace and Nottingham Forest.

"I managed to turn things around," he said.

'Overcome with emotion'

His first, a 93rd-minute equalizer against Leeds in a 2-2 draw at Elland Road, showed the French youth international's knack for making an impact in key moments.

"The moment the ball went in, I lost control of myself," he recounted. "It was the equalizer, I took off my shirt, I was overcome with emotion and, frankly, I won't forget that one."

Promoted to the starting lineup two weeks later against Oliver Glasner's high-flying Eagles, Kroupi scored twice in the first half to give Bournemouth an unlikely 2-0 lead at Selhurst Park, before Palace fought back for a 3-3 draw.

The match fell on his father's birthday.

"He told me he didn't need anything else, that it was the best gift I could give him," the younger Kroupi said.

After scoring the second in a 2-0 win over Forest at the end of October, the goals have dried up for Kroupi.

Bournemouth sits 11th in the Premier League, and is winless since Kroupi's last strike.

The youngster accepts the progression in the Premier League is rarely linear.

"That's what I came here for: development, the challenge, playing with the best players in the world. I was ready to suffer," Kroupi said.

Now, he is delighted to have the opportunity to develop under Bournemouth's highly-regarded young manager, Iraola.

"He may seem cold, but he's someone very close to us, and that's what I found incredible," Kroupi said.

'Football is my life'

Before crossing the Channel to try his luck in the Premier League, Kroupi played for his hometown club Lorient in France's first and second divisions.

He signed for Bournemouth in February of this year, and was loaned back to Lorient as he prepared for the future, torn between "the sadness of leaving (his) city and club, and the excitement of discovering something new".

In his final season for Lorient playing in Ligue 2, he netted 22 goals across 30 appearances.

"He has character, he knows where he wants to go and he doesn't doubt himself," France Under-21 coach Gerald Baticle said.

The striker has also enjoyed an impressive start with the France U21 side, scoring three goals in five outings.

Baticle praised Kroupi's "opportunism and finishing skills", as well as his personality.

He is a "cheerful, radiant boy, who is very pleasant to both the staff and his teammates", the coach added.

"Football is my life. Ifididn't have that, I don't know where I'd be today," Kroupi said.

"I live my job to the fullest, because I don't know when it might end."

While Kroupi is, by his own admission, the type to "live day-by-day", he nonetheless said: "I have dreams, I have goals.

"But, for now, I'm not thinking about that, just about performing and helping my team, that's all."

AFP