Adama Traore is heading to Middlesbrough

Speed — you can’t teach it. Adama Traore has it, but lacked certain other traits like being able to pass the ball. He could do it... theoretically. He just seemed like he didn’t want to. Traore is now back in the Premier League with Middlesbrough for an undisclosed fee.

The Spanish winger joined Villa before last campaign from Barcelona for a reported £7 million fee. He delighted at times when he played, but mostly didn’t play because of injuries and the unwillingness to pass the ball on to teammates

The 20-year old was on huge wages:£40,000 a week in 2015/16, 60,000 in 16/17 and a further rise in 2017 to £90,000. So once, if ever, the cost of the transfer is made public I would expect it to be pretty low. This was yet another failed transfer of a previous regime that Dr Xia has sought to unload.

Still it would not surprise me if Adama comes good and becomes a beast down the line.

Villa confirmed the transfer in the usual brief manner.

Farewell Admiral! (yes that is a Battlestar Galactica reference... deal with it).