Traore has all the necessary qualities
Friday, June 18, 2021
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Shakhtar CEO Sergei Palkin reflects on the striker's transfer
- Mr Palkin, why Traore and how long has the club watched him?
- We consider Traore to be one of the most promising forwards in Europe these days. To be honest, until recently it was hard to believe that we would be able to sign him up just for one reason – in most cases, people don't leave Ajax so easily. Traore had a year of contract left. He’s preferred a different club though. We contacted his agent, there were quite long negotiations, but we reached a consensus, and today Lassina Traore is with us.
- Through what personal qualities could he strengthen the team?
- He is the kind of player that suits any team: both offensive and defensive. He is a versatile footballer. A very powerful, he plays well aerially, being quite technical for a striker, plus he scores goals. If you look at him from all sides and evaluate him among the attackers, then Traore has virtually every quality we need. Moreover, given the fact that Moraes is out for a very long period... May God grant him health, may he recover as soon as possible, but at the moment, I think, this position needed to be strengthened. And we did it.
- Have other players been considered for the striker role and if so, who was that?
- Of course. As for the names – that’s our internal matters. We had many candidates, but we picked Traore.
- Were there any difficulties in the negotiations with Traore and his agent?
- As in any negotiation process, there were some nuances. I would like to mention in this regard that the agency representing the footballer is quite strong and well-known in Europe. It’s difficult to negotiate with them, but we coped, reached an agreement and shook hands. Each side is satisfied - everything ended well.
- We consider Traore to be one of the most promising forwards in Europe these days. To be honest, until recently it was hard to believe that we would be able to sign him up just for one reason – in most cases, people don't leave Ajax so easily. Traore had a year of contract left. He’s preferred a different club though. We contacted his agent, there were quite long negotiations, but we reached a consensus, and today Lassina Traore is with us.
- Through what personal qualities could he strengthen the team?
- He is the kind of player that suits any team: both offensive and defensive. He is a versatile footballer. A very powerful, he plays well aerially, being quite technical for a striker, plus he scores goals. If you look at him from all sides and evaluate him among the attackers, then Traore has virtually every quality we need. Moreover, given the fact that Moraes is out for a very long period... May God grant him health, may he recover as soon as possible, but at the moment, I think, this position needed to be strengthened. And we did it.
- Have other players been considered for the striker role and if so, who was that?
- Of course. As for the names – that’s our internal matters. We had many candidates, but we picked Traore.
- Were there any difficulties in the negotiations with Traore and his agent?
- As in any negotiation process, there were some nuances. I would like to mention in this regard that the agency representing the footballer is quite strong and well-known in Europe. It’s difficult to negotiate with them, but we coped, reached an agreement and shook hands. Each side is satisfied - everything ended well.