Erling Haaland. Dominik Szoboszlai. Sadio Mané. Dayot Upamecano. Konrad Laimer. Karim Adeyemi. Marcel Sabitzer. Naby Keïta. Takumi Minamino.
What do all of these players have in common? They all honed their craft at Red Bull Salzburg before making the move to Europe’s biggest clubs. Another player who has thrived after ascending through Salzburg’s development system is Diadié Samassékou.
Born in Bamako, Mali, Samassékou was 11 years old when he enrolled in the JMG Academy, which had already produced various soccer stars like Gervinho, Yaya and Kolo Touré, and Salomon Kalou. Living away from his family and dealing with the taxing demands of a loaded academic and training schedule, Samassékou was forced to become a man ahead of schedule. Eventually, it paid off as he joined AS Real Bamako in 2013 and began playing regular minutes in the Malian top flight.
“I played in the streets until I was 11 before joining the Jean-Marc Guillou Academy, where I took classes until I was 18,” stated Samassékou in an exclusive World Soccer Talk interview. “When you’re a kid, you just play to enjoy yourself… it’s different from professional soccer, but it’s a lot more fun. I had the chance to grow up with a lot of players that are professionals now, so it was a really great time for me. I was still living in Bamako, but I was always behind closed doors and only saw my parents on the weekends. However, I saw that I wasn’t the only kid in that situation and realized that I had to do it. I was just an 11-year-old kid, I wasn’t used to it, but at the end of the day, this made me what I am today.”
Having gradually made his mark in the Malian Première Division and the CAF Champions League, Samassékou’s first big breakthrough came in New Zealand during the 2015 FIFA U-20 World Cup, with Mali edging Mexico to a place in the knockout round before beating Ghana and Germany. Although they failed to beat Serbia in the semifinals, Samassékou would come away with a bronze medal and earn the attention of Austrian giants Red Bull Salzburg, who signed him to a four-year deal.
After biding his time in the second tier, Samassékou emerged as a full-fledged starter in 2016/17, leading Salzburg to a domestic double under Óscar García before guiding them to another league title in 2017/18. It wasn’t long before leading pundits like Leonardo Bertozzi and Nico Cantor were starting to declare Samassékou as one of the rising stars in African soccer, with the Malian making the UEFA Europa League Squad of the Season after leading Salzburg to the semifinals. The following season, Samassékou scored 2 goals and 2 assists in 45 appearances to guide Salzburg to yet another domestic double alongside other future Premier League players like Hwang Hee-chan, Patson Daka, Dominik Szoboszlai, and Erling Haaland.
“To see the level that he’s at right now… I don’t even think Erling himself would’ve believed he’d be where he is today,” says Samassékou of Manchester City’s Norwegian striker. “You could see that he was really sharp at finding angles and he just wanted to score goals, but nobody would have expected what he’s doing now. He’s quite fast, and as a striker, he has all the qualities needed to perform at the highest level. His performances over the past few years have been really amazing, and that goes down to his dedication to constantly improve.”
After a sensational chapter in Salzburg that saw him win two Austrian Cups and three Austrian Bundesliga titles, as well as being named in two Austrian Bundesliga Teams of the Season, Samassékou made the move to Hoffenheim, who paid a club-record fee of £10.8 million for him in 2019. Samassékou was eased into the team and eventually became a starter in midfield on the cusp of the COVID-19 pandemic, guiding them to Europa League qualification and emerging as a fulcrum in the center of the pitch. However, after failing to convince new manager André Breitenreiter, Samassékou made the move to Greek giants Olympiacos, where he played 25 times before returning to Hoffenheim.
Samassékou struggled for minutes both at Hoffenheim and at Spanish side Cádiz before returning to Germany, where, after being frozen out for the first months of the 2024/25 campaign, he made seven straight starting appearances in December and January, only to suffer a muscular injury. He returned two months later but would last just five minutes before injuring his thigh vs. Heidenheim, which would end up being his 97th and final appearance for Hoffenheim. After several weeks as a free agent, Samassékou decided to end his European adventure and join MLS side Houston Dynamo on a 1.5-year contract on August 23, 2025. On September 20, he made his MLS debut after replacing Brooklyn Raines for the final seconds of Houston’s 1-0 win vs. Portland Timbers.
“It was a great feeling to make my Houston debut. I was put into the match during a very stressful moment; the hardest situation to come into a match as a player is when you’re winning 1-0, because you need to be able to read the game. But it was really nice, and the atmosphere in the stadium was really good. That’s what I like about MLS: you’ll see in the pre-match festivities that every game is a show. I’m really happy to be here, so let’s see what I can bring to the team. I’m just looking forward to starting to play every game for Houston.”
He was left on the bench for the final three matches of the season as Houston narrowly missed out on a playoff spot for the first time since Ben Olsen’s appointment in 2023. Although he has competed in three different Africa Cup of Nations tournaments for Mali, all signs point to him being left out of the squad for next month’s tournament, which will see them face off against Zambia, Morocco, and Comoros. However, at 29 years of age, time is on Samassékou’s side as he looks to make it back into the national team for the first time since June 2024 and earn his 42nd cap for Les Aigles.
“Playing for the Mali national team, especially in midfield, you’ve got to deal with some tough competition. First of all, I just need to focus on myself and give my best; it’s more about performances than anything else, so I’m just trying to be the best version of myself here in Houston. If the national team coach [Tom Saintfiet] thinks that I can bring something to the team and calls me up for the tournament, then I will be happy to play in my fourth AFCON. But I think they are already doing a good job and already have a lot of good players, so I’m not sad to not be in the team. If I can help Mali, then I will do it, but my priority right now is to enjoy and perform and be the best version of myself that I can be.”
