Many were surprised that Aston Villa were ready to let Adama Traore leave so quickly last summer – but perhaps Middlesbrough now understand why.
Aston Villa’s decision to let a thrilling, one-time Barcelona prodigy depart the club in return for one Albert Adomah appeared to make little sense at the time.
Yet, 12 months after Villa allowed Adama Traore to leave for promoted Middlesbrough after just one season in the Midlands, as reported by the BBC, few supporters will be enduring sleepless nights.
The claret and blue outfit appeared to have pulled off quite the coup when they raided Barcelona for the £7 million youngster in the summer of 2016, per the Daily Mirror. Traore had shades of Leo Messi, according to manager Tim Sherwood.
Former Aston Villa manager Tim Sherwood
And although glimpses of his quality were fleeting to say the least, a remarkable burst of acceleration made Traore one of the most exciting talents in the Premier League. He looked a certain star for the future and a fans favourite in the making.
Therefore, few would have expected that Villa could lay claim to getting the better part of the deal when swapping the La Masia graduate for a former Bristol City winger.
Yet, while Adomah set up ten goals in the Championship last season, Traore only assisted one in the top flight. He also scored a grand total of zero goals in his 27 appearances.
Furthermore, Boro boss Aitor Karanka was forced to switch Traore from one wing to the other at half-time to ensure he would be within earshot of his manager. The youngster’s understanding of the game was so raw that Karanka saw the need to micro-manage him during every single minute.
By the end of the campaign, with Boro suffering relegation after just one season, Traore had gone from a star turn to a one-trick pony. Maybe Villa knew what they were doing after all.
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