Everton have reportedly stepped up interest in Wolves winger Adama Traore, who has just returned from a loan spell at Barcelona.
According to a report by Football Insider, Everton have officially registered their interest in Wolverhampton Wanderers attacker Adama Traore. The 26-year-old Spanish international spent the second half of last season at Barcelona but has now returned to the Premier League club.
Traore’s spell at Barcelona was not a great one with the Blaugrana choosing against making his move permanent after he managed to provide just four assists in 17 appearances across all competitions. There were reports that the Catalan giants could let Francisco Trincao go the other way for Traore, but the rumours did not have much base.
The 26-year-old also had a sub-par first half of the 2021/22 season, where he scored just a goal for Wolves in 20 Premier League appearances. Traore has not managed to replicate the goods of the 2019/20 term when he finished the league season with four goals and nine assists. Wolves now consider him a sellable asset and wish to raise funds by offloading him in the upcoming summer transfer window.
Everton have emerged as a potential option, with their director of football Kevin Thelwell believed to be a big fan of Traore. Thelwell signed the 26-year-old Spanish international for Wolves in 2018 and could sign him again with the Toffees this time around, knowing the player well enough.
Thelwell believes Traore could be a good addition to their squad, who lacked cutting edge last season. Everton also look set to lose Richarlison this summer and want to replace the Brazilian with the Wolves wide man.
The report claims that Wolves could be convinced for a fee of around £20 million, but Everton are expected to start the bidding at a lower value.
The Toffees, under manager Frank Lampard, narrowly avoided relegation this season, finishing 16th in the league table. A 3-2 win over Crystal Palace on the penultimate matchday helped Everton stay afloat, and they will now want to turn things around in the upcoming term.
Signing Traore could be a good start to an important summer, which could define how their season goes. But it will be interesting to see if the 26-year-old Spanish international is ready to move to Everton this summer.
