Chelsea Sign Pre-Season Star – Bertrand Traore

Bertrand Traore

We may be between transfer windows but Chelsea confirmed a hugely anticipated signature of highly rated Bertrand Traore on a four year contract.

Having been associated with the club for a couple of years it has been a nervous sweat since his star turn in pre-season for him to turn old enough to sign a contract and secure his future at the Bridge.

You may remember Traore as he set our pre-season alight getting on the scoresheet and putting in some solid performances. There is still the issue of a work permit.

There is little immediate hope of getting one and Traore will need to be selected in the Burkina Faso squad for ¾ of their games over two years and have the African nation remain in the top 70 in the world (they are currently 48^th).

Only then will there be a realistic chance of a permit being granted and even then it is dependent on Traore being judged as a player of the ‘highest calibre’ able to make a significant contribution to the development of football in the UK.

Great to have it confirmed, although we will likely see him go out on loan to a European club that have less stringent work permit criteria.