Chelsea are reportedly stepping up their interest in Middlesbrough winger Adama Traore.
The Blues were surprisingly linked with a move for the 21-year-old speed demon in January.
And according to Catalan paper Sport, the Premier League champions are interested in the star again.
Chelsea and Antonio Conte seem to have patched-up their differences following the fall-out over the Italian manager’s text informing Diego Costa he was no longer part of the coach’s plan.
The West London outfit are now getting their act together as they attempt to bolster their squad.
They have already secured the signing of goalkeeper Willy Caballero on a free transfer, due to be announced on July 1, and are now pushing ahead in the hunt for other targets.
Everton’s Belgian striker Romelu Lukaku remains the No1 priority for the Blues.
While they are also keen on securing a deal for Monaco midfielder Tiemoue Bakayoko.
And now Traore has emerged as another possible man Conte wants to add ahead of next season.
The Spanish youngster was one of the few bright sparks of the Boro side that suffered relegation back to the Championship.
While defensively naïve, his raw, attacking threat at least gave the Riverside crowd something to cheer.
However, the former Barcelona man has failed to score in either of his two seasons since arriving in England.
He joined Aston Villa two years ago from the Nou Camp giants but suffered the drop from the top-flight with the Villans in his only season there.
Adama Traore factfile
- He was born in L’Hospitalet, Spain on Janury 25 1996
- The winger began his career with Barcelona and spent two seasons with their B side
- He played his only La Liga game for the senior Catalans side when he replaced Neymar from the bench against Granada in November 2013 aged 17
- Aston Villa splashed out around £7million to sign him on a five-year deal in August 2015
- He played 11 top-flight matches for the Villans before they were relegated
- Traore joined Middlesbrough in August 2016 but failed to score as he suffered the drop for the second consecutive season in England
And that was followed by the miserable campaign on Teesside.
Traore is believed to be one of three men relegated Boro have put up for sale.
Uruguayan playmaker Gaston Ramirez and Dutch international midfielder Marten de Roon have also reportedly been made available.