Is Traore a good fit for Boro - An Arsenal view
By Shaun • Dec 3rd, 2008 • Category: Boro NewsThere has been talk over the last few days that Gareth Southgate may be looking to sign Armand Traore from Arsene Wenger's Arsenal. Personally i'm not so sure Boro have the money at the moment to sign a young player of Traore's quality and I am also not so sure Traore would be a great left back for the club, the more I see of him the more I think he is an outstanding attacking player but a little suspect defensively.
Regardless, if Southgate does decide to try to link Armand Traore up with his former Arsenal teammate Justin Hoyte, we wanted to get an opinion from someone who has seen a lot more of the player than we have. Enter Jamie Sanderson, regular readers will recall Jamie did a similar interview on Justin Hoyte when rumours of him signing for Boro were flying around. Jamie runs the Young Guns site, a blog focused primarily on the young players coming through at Arsenal, it's well worth a read.
Traore burst onto the scene as a youngster at Arsenal, a player who looked in the same mold as Ashley Cole and Gael Clichy, can you give us your assessment of him?
Armand is quite similar to Cole and Clichy in terms of qualities, but Traore is trickier and much taller than the other two. He's very very quick, a superb crosser and very skillful. He's not much of a tackler but he is learning that side of the game, and overall, a bright prospect.
Many people think Traore is better suited as a wingback or a left winger and is limited as a defensive player, what is your opinion on this?
We all see Traore's longer term future as a winger, and inside the last 6 months he's been learning the trade. It was decided that if he was to make it here he must play on the wing, and spent much of last season in the Reserves doing so.
He scored a couple of stunning goals from the wing, but his crossing was a little irratic. Eventually he found his feet and on the final day of the season he provided a brilliant ball for Nicklas Bendtner to bag the winner. So that combined with his wing form at Pompey would suggest that's where his future is.
Has Traore just found himself stuck behind Gael Clichy for Arsenal or is he ultimately not considered good enough to be an first team regular for Arsenal?
Gael Clichy is probably the best left back in the world at the moment. He got into the Premiership team of the year, and is now around the French team. So it's not a bad thing that Armand's behind him, it's just Gael is incredible. Armand is very talented, but he must learn the defensive side a bit more before he can push Clichy.
Do you think Traore has a future with Arsenal or is Wenger likely to be looking to sell him on?
Well he signed a new 4 year contract in the summer so it would suggest that Wenger wants him to stay. But we've got Kieran Gibbs who's making real ground in the Carling Cup in that position, and a Brazilian kid called Pedro Botelho who is almost identical to Traore in terms of attributes and positioning.
Botelho is currently on loan in Spain getting a work permit, but he'll be with us this summer. He can play on the wing, but is mainly a left back, and somebody the club fought hard to sign. The rumour surprised us all because Harry Redknapp recently said he would love to have signed Armand, but there was no chance of it happening.
Shaun is A Boro fan and owner of BoroMania.com. Born and brought up in the North East. Favourite players are Juninho, Slaven and David Wheater.
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I would love to have Armand Traore at the Boro, Taylor has been poor at Left Back this season and i think it is a problem position for us. Traore looks a very good young player, doubt Wenger will sell him cheap though.
Quick mention for Justin Hoyte, i think he has been very good lately after a shakey start and i’m very excited about his future, think he could turn out to be a great bit of business from Southgate.
bloody hell made a mess of that! seem to have typed some of my message into the name field!!!
Hi, an Arsenal fan here.
I agree with Jamie’s assessment on Armand, he is a very fine player. In my opinion he is a far superior player to Kieran Gibbs, the left back of the CC team. Defensively he isn’t perfect but I don’t count him as a bad defensive full back for his age. He will have to learn a lot in that area but his positioning is not terrible, compared to Gibbs for example who is very woeful.
I think it would be a great deal for Boro if it happened, but I sincerely hope that Wenger will give Traore his chance next season to proof himself at the Grove. If he were to be sold, I’m guessing a price figure of around 8 millions. He is only 19 and has been a regular for Pompey this season. I would be very disappointed in our new CEO if got anything less than 8 millions for him.
Hi Stone, thanks for the input. I actually thought Gibbs looked very impressive in the CC games this season, Traore is an outstanding talent though and I don’t think Arsenal will sell for cheap. He certainly fits into the team Southgate is trying to build, young and pacey with plenty of potential but I don’t see Boro having the money to convince Wenger to sell.
BoroFan101 - I’ve changed the error in your name from the first comment
traore reminds me of marcell jansen great going forwards, but defensivly weak however the lad is only 19 if we are looking for a LB it should be someone experienced
Another arsenal fan here and think he would be a good fit at boro. Armand is a dynamic speedy attacking player, that at 19 will definetly grow into assuming more his defensive responsibilities. I dont see his future at arsenal as earlier someone commented there seems to be a surplus of skilled players in this position for us. Gibbs and Traore are similar, and for some reason the english lads are getting the preferences all other things being equal. I could see a similar deal to the one that saw Bently go to Blackburn, where Boro would buy Traore with a substantial percentage of any sell on fee going back to the gunners. Good luck to Boro think you are on the right path with Southgate, I like what he is doin with you team
Thanks for the input Charlie, I wonder if Wenger had a percentage of sell on fee clause put into Justin Hoyte’s contract?
I think Traore looks a great prospect, and could go on to be a top left back. No chance we would shell out £8m on him, but £3m with a sell-on clause? That could be a good deal for all parties.
On the other hand, Southgate would be reluctant to block the progress of the glut of youngsters we have available in that position.
Will be interesting to see if anything comes of the speculation.