On 21 June 2011, Boakye officially joined Serie B outfit Sassuolo on a one-year loan deal that proved very successful for the Ghanaian; he managed to score 12 goals in 36 appearances for the club that missed promotion to Serie A via a promotion play-off loss on aggregate to U.C. Sampdoria during the 2011–12. His loan deal was extended for an extra year for the after signing for Juventus in 2012. The following season, the 2012–13, he scored 11 league goals in 32 league appearances, ended as the club's joint top scorer and helped them to win the Serie B thus achieving direct promotion to Serie A and ensuring a first top-flight campaign ever in the club's history for the 2013–14 season.