Barcelona cannot afford to trigger the €30 million purchase option in Adama Traore’s loan deal and will look to incorporate a makeweight to land the attacker.
According to a report by Spanish publication SPORT, signing Adama Traore by paying €30 million to Wolverhampton Wanderers in the summer transfer window is not an option for Barcelona. Instead, the Blaugrana will look to clinch a swap deal to do away with the purchase option and land the on-loan Spanish attacker permanently.
Adama Traore is currently in his second spell at Barcelona, having rejoined the club on loan for the second half of the 2021/22 season. After several tough months at Wolverhampton Wanderers, the 26-year-old has rediscovered his best form, making an immediate impact upon returning to Camp Nou.
Traore has provided four assists in ten appearances for Barcelona thus far, directly contributing to a goal every 133 minutes. While the Spanish international is yet to find the back of the net in his current stint, he has impressed Xavi Hernandez enough in his short stay to convince Barcelona to sign him permanently in the summer transfer window.
Traore has added a new dimension to the Barcelona attack, with his direct running opening up spaces for his teammates to exploit. The 26-year-old has particularly been a game-changing option off the bench due to his tendency to take on tiring defenders in the final minutes. Barcelona’s decision to sign Traore permanently is thus hardly surprising.
But the Catalan giants do not have the funds to trigger the purchase option in Traore’s loan deal. According to the terms of the agreement, Barcelona will need to pay €30 million to sign the Spanish international permanently in the summer transfer window.
With their financial issues still a long way from being resolved, Barcelona will need to manage their payments in transfer fees. That is why the La Liga heavyweights are now looking for alternate ways to sign Traore permanently, including the option to swap Francisco Trincao with the Spaniard.
But Trincao has recently lost his place as a regular in Bruno Lage’s side, meaning Jorge Mendes will have an uphill task to convince Wolverhampton Wanderers to sign him permanently. Alternatively, Barcelona could include Riqui Puig in the deal to sign Traore, with the young midfielder a target for the Midlands outfit.
Signing Traore permanently for €30 million is not an option for Barcelona. If Wolves insist on the purchase option to be triggered, then Barcelona could wait a year before signing the 26-year-old Spanish attacker on a Bosman move once his contract at the Molineux runs out.
