Fertile Adama: For the second chance Traura has received from Barcelona

In 2015 he left in jarring tones because his skills did not match the style, but last January the extreme was surprisingly restored precisely because of the same features.

And yet - despite the brilliant start, his test will also continue against Napoli (19:45, Sport 4)

Michael Yochin

17/02/2022

Thursday, February 17, 2022, 10:00 p.m.

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Less than a month ago, Adama Traore made desperate efforts to move to Tottenham.

Two months ago he gave his agent Jorge Mendes a chance to check out the signing option at Real Madrid - an idea that was outright rejected at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Today he is one of the most revered heroes of Barcelona.

The exiled son not only surprisingly returned to his youth team, from which he escaped in very jarring tones somewhere in 2015, but became a star in the first two games in the Blaugrana uniform, bringing her precious points.

In his debut against Atletico Madrid a week and a half ago, he completely drove the champion's shaky defense completely crazy, "Circus" repeatedly beating Mario Hermoso on the right wing, enjoying up to the roof collaborating with Danny Alves and cooking Gabby's batting goal, which put Barça ahead 1: 2 on the way to the big win 2: 4.

When he was replaced, he gained a standing ovation from the crowd at Camp Nou and was close to tears when he was interviewed at the end of the match.

On Sunday, when Barcelona trailed in a derby against Espanyol, Xavi no longer took him off the pitch.

The coach made offensive substitutions one after another, but Traore remained there on the wing, hoping his galloping would yield the desired result.

and so it was.

In the last seconds of injury time, the "parrots" defense left him unattended - and he was very sorry about that.

Traore sent a measured ball to the head of Luc de Jong, the Dutchman equalized to 2: 2 and Barça kept the fourth place.

Two cooks in two games - not a bad balance for someone who has not contributed even one assist this season at Wolves.

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To the full article

Two cooks in two games.

Adama Trauma's second term in Barcelona opens successfully (Photo: GettyImages, Eric Alonso)

"Wolves" coach Bruno Laze liked to praise Traore and defined him as a great team player, but in the bottom line he was benched, and the final product completely did not match the potential he had - at least on paper.

Adama has always been defined as a unique and rare player in his qualities, dating back to the days when he broke out as a teenager in La Masia.

Such a combination of dizzying speed, physical strength manifested mainly in muscle mass, low center of gravity and tremendous ball control has never been seen before.

You just had to know how to use it, and for many years this was the main problem.

When the muse rested on him, he was able to decide games on his own.

Pep Guardiola knows this well - in late 2019 Adama dismantled Manchester City twice and brought Wolves two brilliant victories over the Blues, which greatly strengthened the status of coach Nono Aspirito Santo.

However, the 3 conquests against Ederson accounted for almost half of the 8 goals scored by Traore throughout his tenure in the orange uniform.

In many games, he just burst and dribbled himself to know, without sending even one proper wide ball.

The instability caused him to be labeled as a rather wasted player.

He binds to many luxury teams in countless reports in almost every transfer window, but in the bottom line nothing has ever come of it.

This was also the case last summer, when Nono signed for Tottenham, being roughly the eighth option for the Roosters.

Traore saw this as a great opportunity to finally move forward, and even moved to super agent Georges Mendes, who also represents Nono himself.

The financial gaps were too great, and this was also the case in January, when Wolves demanded at least £ 25 million for him. In between, he even tried to spread rumors about his desire to join Real. So completely irrelevant? There is no knowing - but Barcelona came into the picture at the last minute to engineer a great deal for everyone involved.

Wolves have taken some risk by transferring Adama on loan until the end of the season at no cost, but Barcelona have a purchase option for 35 million euros - which is a relatively high price for a player whose contract expires in the summer of 2023. , And the Catalans hope that by the end of the season they will have a much wider room for maneuver, thanks to the creative actions of sporting director Matthew Almani.

Was his sophisticated exercise the one that led to Trauma's comeback?

Georgia Mendes (Photo: GettyImages)

Almani's deep acquaintance with Mendes from his time in Valencia, over which the agent has almost absolute influence, was very helpful.

Wolves is also controlled by Mendes, who helped Chinese owners purchase the club and has since made it the largest Portuguese colony in Europe.

This is how Nelson Samado and Francisco Trincao were sent to the "wolves" in the last two summers, and business ties have tightened.

Eventually, Adama's loan closed within hours, with Xavi giving his consent to the move.

The professional goal of the new Barcelona coach was to add a whole new dimension to the attacks.

Although Traura graduated from Asia, he was pushed aside at the time, among other things, because his style is completely different from what is customary at Camp Nou.

"I thought I had done enough, but they sent me back to the reserve group and did not even explain the reason," he later testified - and the insult was great.

Now, even though his reputation was not brilliant, the perfect situation for a comeback was created, because these special features were required nonetheless.

Xavi has revealed that Barcelona have a hard time breaking through tight defenses, especially against rivals who tend to place closed formations like Mallorca, Granada and Elbas.

The final approval for Trauma's signing was given after a very difficult 0-1 on the field of the humble Basques, and along the way also organized the surprising move of Pierre-Emerick Obmiang, whom Xabi defined at the time as a striker who is effective only in open spaces and therefore not suitable for Barça.

This approach reveals that the boss is much more flexible than expected, and is willing to bet on methods that deviate substantially from the way he is used to functioning on the grass himself.

This is also the reason why Locke de Jong was not neglected, but rather was frequently used.

The Dutchman, who is the complete opposite of a classic Barcelona striker, was the one who scored against Mallorca and Granada, and is now crowned savior when he connects to Traore's elevation against Espanyol.

Much more flexible than expected.

Xavi (Photo: GettyImages, PAU BARRENA)

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The elevation also made Traora a hero, but it must be admitted that his second game in the Blaugrana uniform was less successful than the first, and it is the issue of continuity that will determine his future.

Barcelona received him on ideal terms without risk, and no one guarantees that at the end of the process the amount she so expects will indeed be paid to Wolves.

This trial period began on the right foot, but his time at Wolves was not ultimately measured in two wins over City and Guardiola, nor will the renewed adventure at Camp Nou be measured based on his debut against Atletico Madrid and Diego Simeone.

He must prove himself on a regular basis until May, in the battle for fourth place in the league - or perhaps qualify for the Champions League through the Europa League.

In that sense, the relegation in the Champions League home stage may even become a blessing, and in any case it is a factory in which the Catalans have not yet won.

Tonight against Napoli (19:45, Sport4) this journey is underway, and there is a reasonable basis to believe that Traora will once again be in the squad on the right wing.

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