da jogodeouro： Aston Villa could ‘dip into the transfer market’ to replace Bertrand Traore if they manage to sell him, sports journalist Pete O’Rourke has told GiveMeSport.
The lowdown
da esport bet： Villa manager Steven Gerrard has indicated that Traore isn’t part of his plans by sending him to train with the club’s under-23s.
The former Chelsea man is apparently ‘closing in’ on a move to Istanbul Basaksehir in the Turkish Super Lig.
They would initially sign him on loan but have the option to buy the £78,000-per-week man.
Villa have signed five players so far – Diego Carlos, Philippe Coutinho, Robin Olsen, Ludwig Augustinsson and Boubacar Kamara.
The latest
O’Rourke says Traore’s exit could raise plenty of money, both in terms of a potential transfer fee and a reduced wage bill.
And Gerrard may be able to direct those funds towards another winger to fill out his squad.
“It would save some money for Villa, the player being a high earner at the club,” he said. It would maybe enable Gerrard to dip into the transfer market, if he is able to offload him, to bring in a replacement.”
The verdict
Who might Gerrard look to bring in?
Well one candidate is Rangers winger Ryan Kent, a player with whom Gerrard worked at Ibrox.
O’Rourke previously told The Transfer Tavern that the 42-year-old could ‘potentially’ seek a reunion with Kent this summer because he’s still ‘a big fan’.
And Football Insider have previously claimed that his contract contains a £20million release clause, which could make the process an awful lot smoother.
With Traore out of the picture, signing Kent would be a significant boost to the depth of the Villa squad.