Presenter Conor McGilligan has slammed the idea that Leeds United could go and sign Adama Traore this summer.
As things stand, it looks as though the Whites will be losing Raphinha in the current window, with plenty of clubs linked.
If the Brazilian does go, Leeds will likely need a replacement. One name to have been tipped as a target is Traore, with Football Insider recently reporting that a ‘bid of around £18m’ would be enough to force a switch.
However, this link has left McGilligan rather underwhelmed, with the podcaster and journalist slamming the Wolves man’s ‘absolutely shocking’ end product.
While speaking on the One Leeds Fan channel, he said: “Adama Traore. It looks like he’s going to be about £18m. That would be the X-factor replacement [for Raphinha], I guess. But in my opinion, it just isn’t. I mean, his output is absolutely shocking.
“Don’t get me wrong, his pace can be quite frightening. He damaged Leeds United when he played for Middlesbrough. And that’s the worry for me – it’s the link between Victor Orta and Adama Traore at Middlesbrough.
“It’s that Hollywood effect that Victor Orta seems to really bask in, when bringing in a certain player that either he has worked with before, or he’s sort of tracked for years and years and years that maybe that player isn’t what they were. But he’s still that marquee signing that Victor wants to bring in as sort of a statement.”
Should Leeds sign Adama Traore this summer?
Yes
No
TIF Thoughts on Adama Traore and Leeds…
As alluded to by McGilligan, Orta did indeed sign Traore when he was working for Middlesborough, landing the winger from Aston Villa. And it has recently been reported that the Leeds executive really does ‘love’ the idea of making the Wolves man a signing this summer.
While the links may make a lot of sense, that doesn’t mean all will feel it would be a good move. Indeed, the 26-year-old has never been the most consistent when it comes to providing telling moments on the pitch. For instance, in 154 games for Wolves, he scored just 11 times, while at Middlesbrough he had just five goals in 71 outings.
Taking it all into account, it’s not hard to see why McGilligan isn’t so keen on the idea of the winger joining Leeds as a replacement for Raphinha, who has been a lot more efficient with his goal contributions – scoring 11 times in the Premier League alone last term.
NO,NO, NO! Nowhere near good enough. If we still had Bielsa then maybe but without his magic, Traore would stay exactly the same player, premier league pace, sunday league end product.