The deal which takes Brett Pitman from Dean Court to Ashton Gate was confirmed on Monday.
On the move, for an undisclosed fee, believed to be in the region of £800,000, Chairman Eddie Mitchell is quoted in the Bournemouth Evening Echo as saying: "He’s been sold because he’s wanting to go and play for a club in a higher division that can offer him a better prospect, and that’s what we’ve let him do. He was very keen to see the enquiries coming in and very anxious to move forward. I know he was still under contract but I think we owed it to him to let him go on and try his hand a bit further up the scale".
Manager Eddie Howe was quoted as saying on Brett's departure: "We’re disappointed to lose Brett. Anyone who has watched us over the past year-and-a-half would have seen what a good player and excellent finisher he is. We’re going to miss him immensely because he has been core to our plans. But it’s a great opportunity for him to test himself at a higher level and we wish him all the best. I hope he goes there and carries on the form that he has shown here. I think you can cope without any one individual and no individual is bigger than the team. But it’s a huge loss for us, there is no getting away from it. I’m not going to lie and say we won’t miss him because we will. We’ve got a great group of professionals. They have had many setbacks in the past and have always dealt with them. They will see this as another challenge to build another team that can compete in the league. It’s not the end. Hopefully, it’s still the beginning".