Adama Traoré revisits Barcelona rift ahead of Aston Villa Champions League clash
Adama Traoré has recalled his first departure from Barcelona and his impressions of his temporary return to the club, in a report ahead of the Spanish side’s Champions League meeting with Aston Villa on Tuesday. Traoré said his first exit was not on good terms, as manager Luis Enrique did not explain why he was left out of the first-team plans.
Adama Traoré has recalled his first departure from Barcelona and his impressions of his temporary return to the club, in a report ahead of the Spanish side’s Champions League meeting with Aston Villa on Tuesday. Traoré said his first exit was not on good terms, as manager Luis Enrique did not explain why he was left out of the first-team plans.
Traoré joined Aston Villa from Barcelona in August 2015, after impressing for Barcelona B and making a limited number of appearances for the first team. He was nineteen and moved for seven million pounds, but his spell ended with Villa’s relegation, having made just 12 appearances.
After rebuilding his career at Middlesbrough and then Wolverhampton Wanderers, Traoré returned to Barcelona on loan in January 2022, but the move did not become permanent. In a later interview, he attributed the difficulties of his second spell to a personal change linked to manager Xavi, saying he had come in to fill Ousmane Dembélé’s position, after which Xavi kept him there.
Traoré was the first player to move from Barcelona to Aston Villa in 2015, before Philippe Coutinho and Clément Lenglet later followed the same path. The two teams meet in the Champions League on Tuesday, with Villa manager Unai Emery hoping to secure an impressive result in Spain.