Aston Villa forward Bertrand Traore is set to undergo a medical at Istanbul Basaksehir this Friday, and sign for the Super Lig side on loan over interest from Besiktas and Galatasaray.
Bertrand Traore now set for Basaksehir medical ahead of Aston Villa loan exit
According to RMC Sport, Istanbul Basaksehir have scheduled a medical for Bertrand Traore in the next few hours. The Super Lig side are set to sign the Burkina Faso forward on a one-season loan deal from Aston Villa, having accelerated discussions amid fierce competition.
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Basaksehir Fatih Terim Stadium chiefs moved fast to overcome interest from Besiktas and Galatasaray to sign Traore from Aston Villa. Coach Emre Belozoglu was determined to see his outfit win the tussle to unleash the 26-year-old promptly, particularly in European ties.
The ambitious project Belozoglu is putting together at Basaksehir, with Mesut Ozil joining this July, seduced Traore to sign on loan from Aston Villa. He also appreciates that the Boz Baykuslar will provide him with a chance to play at centre-forward, a role he held at Ajax.
Belozoglu has strived to sign Ozil already and now add Traore with Basaksehir competing in the Europa Conference League. His Istanbul outfit played the first-leg of their qualifying play-off with Royal Antwerp on Thursday, and held the Belgian side to a 1-1 draw at home.
Traore could now sign for Basaksehir ahead of their Super Lig meeting with Kayserispor on Sunday. The Boz Baykuslar outfit then visit Royal Antwerp for their crucial second-leg next Thursday for a place in the Europa Conference League group stage, needing to win the tie.
Bertrand Traore to go out on loan after leaving Steven Gerrard ‘super frustrated’
Aston Villa will let Traore sign for Istanbul Basaksehir on loan, having not featured in any of their matchday squads so far this season. Steven Gerrard omitted the 66-cap international from his plans against Bournemouth and Everton, having rarely relied on his last term, too.
Traore only featured five times and started once in the Premier League after Gerrard took over from Dean Smith. He also failed to score or provide any assists over just 160 minutes, having enduring a host of injury issues that left Gerrard feeling ‘super frustrated’ last term.
Rarely could Gerrard see the forward Smith called ‘marvellous’ and paid Lyon £17m to sign in 2020. Traore will now travel to Istanbul to undergo a medical with Basaksehir in the next few hours, ahead of signing on loan from Aston Villa – where his contract expires in 2024.
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