The Spain
international has caught the attention of top Premier League scouts with his
impressive displays at right wing in recent seasons.
In 2019/20, he
scored four goals and bagged nine assists as Wolves finished seventh in the
Premier League.
His performances in the most
recent season weren’t as good, along with almost all of his Wolves team-mates,
but that hasn’t put off Chelsea.
According to transfer
journalist Matt Law (via Caught Offside), the Blues have ‘definitely’ expressed
an interest in signing Traore from Wolves.
They’re gearing up for another
busy summer with Thomas Tuchel looking to make the squad his own.
The German already has
Christian Pulisic and Callum Hudson-Odoi available on the right flank, although
Traore could be added to bolster his options.
With Tuchel’s 3-4-3 formation
proving to be a success, Traore may also be signed to take up the right
wing-back role. That would allow Reece James to become Cesar Azpilicueta’s
long-term successor at right centre-back.
However, any Chelsea bid would
surely result in a counter offer from Liverpool. Jurgen Klopp is an admirer of
Traore’s talents and reportedly wants to take him to Anfield.
The pacy 25-year-old, one of
the best dribblers in the Premier League, is viewed as a potential replacement
for either Mo Salah or Sadio Mane.
The two goalscorers have been
linked with big money moves to Real Madrid, forcing Liverpool to search for new
forwards.
Former Liverpool striker Emile
Heskey urged the club to raid Wolves for Traore and Pedro Neto earlier in the
campaign.
He said: “Traore and Neto give
you different options and both are exciting players. Very, very direct which
suits the way that Liverpool play.
“They’ve never really had that
(the depth) before. Usually, the front-three have killed off a game, and you
bring the others (Shaqiri and Origi) on to see the game out.
“Now, we are relying on those
two to get ourselves back into a game or to finish off a game and it’s not
quite there. The depth isn’t quite at the level of Man City.”
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