Traoré, a rock bathed in oil against Sevilla

”Everything is possible at Wolverhampton. I think we can make history in this team ”. These were the words of Adama Traoré in an interview last summer with the official media of the Wolves, the historic English team that will face Sevilla in the quarterfinals of the Europa League (21.00, Movistar Champions League) on Tuesday. The 24-year-old Spanish winger has become one of the benchmarks of a team that finished in seventh place in the Premier League.

Traoré, a true physical beast , has played 53 games with Wolves, 14 in this edition of the Europa League that the English team began to play on July 25, 2019, more than a year ago. Born in L'Hospitalet, to Malian parents, and trained in the Barcelona quarry, Traoré has found this year at Wolves the balance necessary for his speed and power to benefit the team. And he has also found the formula so that defenders do not counteract that speed with grabs: he applies infant oil to his arms before games.

The winger has left behind the tactical loopholes that prevented him from being an unstoppable footballer when he landed in England in 2015 in the ranks of Aston Villa. "He is a special, unique player, with an impact in every game," said his coach, Nuno Espiritu Santo, shortly before his team defeated Aston Villa in the last Premier League and when rumors of his possible departure to Liverpool were continuous . The facts prove Traoré right. The right winger, sometimes converted to a lane by the Portuguese coach, has scored six goals and provided 12 assists in the 53 games between the Europa League, Cup and Premier.

“He is a footballer who has confirmed this year all the good things that were pointed out in the past, where he was a revelation at Wolves. He is a player well known to us from his stay at Barcelona and in the lower echelons of the national team. In the race he is unstoppable and has developed an impressive physique in England ”, they say at Sevilla. A club where Monchi, in 2015, came to consider the possibility of signing the footballer, an express request from Unai Emery, impacted by Traoré's performances in the Barcelona subsidiary in the 2014-15 academic year (14 assists and three goals, although the subsidiary dropped to Second). Barcelona made cash and sold it that same summer for 10 million euros to Aston Villa. An investment that Sevilla, who wanted a loan like Denis Suárez's, could not make.

Speed ​​and overflow

“Speed, overflow and power are the basic qualities of Adama. Although he is a footballer who also has good individual technique, ”says Santi Denia, who trained him in the lower categories of the Spanish team, specifically in the U-16 and U-17 teams. “He is a footballer with the culture of Barcelona who has learned a lot over the years. I think his time in Middlesbrough under Karanka served him well. It may not be very regular, but it has that speed that is lethal in today's football, ”continues Denia.

"I am sure that Lopetegui will have prepared the game very well to take into account a footballer like Traoré. With the ball controlled and with spaces ahead, it is very difficult to stop ”, adds the current coach of the Spanish Under-19 team. “He has qualities to play in the senior team and we have always had him in the lower teams. It is now Luis Enrique who has to decide ”, he adds. Traoré was called up by the previous national coach, Robert Moreno, for the duels against Malta and Romania last November 2019 qualifying for the Eurocup. Traoré did not show up finally due to injury and can still be selected by Mali.

United and Inter go to the semifinals

The Europa League experienced the first day of the quarterfinals. The predictions were fulfilled and Manchester United and Inter reached the semifinals. The English team will face the winner of the duel between Wolves and Sevilla, a match that will take place next Sunday. It took a lot for United to beat a Copenhagen that sold its defeat quite dearly (1-0 in extra time). The Danish team had already made history by qualifying for the quarterfinals of a European competition for the first time.

United fired a couple of shots at the posts, but at the end of regulation time it was a scoreless draw. The entry of Mata gave the English a lot of football, who finally managed to score after a rigorous penalty in the 95th minute on Martial scored by Bruno Fernandes.

Inter Milan became the first semi-finalist of the competition after defeating Bayer Leverkusen in a highly entertaining match (2-1). Barella and Lukaku, in a great moment of form, put the Italians ahead on the scoreboard. Leverkusen's great figure, Havertz, closed the gap. Inter had quite a few options afterwards, but they were unsuccessful. Those from Conte will face the winner of Shakhtar-Basel.