Aston Villa winger Bertrand Traore has reportedly undergone surgery to sort out a groin issue, although it’s described as a ‘minor intervention’.
The 25-year-old enjoyed a positive campaign last time round, scoring eight goals and providing seven assists in 38 appearances as he emerged as a key figure for Dean Smith.
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With the arrival of Emiliano Buendia this summer though, the Burkina Faso international will face additional competition for a place in the Villa line-up in the upcoming Premier League campaign, and so news of a potential injury layoff will no doubt come as a frustrating setback ahead of pre-season.
As reported by FootMercato, Traore missed international duty last week to undergo a groin operation to address an issue that has been bothering him since January.
It has been described as a ‘minor intervention’, and while it’s noted that it was successful, Traore is likely to now rest for a week before stepping up his recovery heading towards a return to Bodymoor Heath for pre-season training next month.
Naturally, to give Smith as many options as possible heading into the new campaign and to have as strong a squad as possible at his disposal, it’s hoped that Traore’s setback isn’t too troublesome and that he can make a swift and full recovery having now gone under the knife.
While Buendia will apply more pressure on him to keep his place in the starting XI, there is a chance he could be part of a very exciting attacking quartet next season and so he’ll be itching to get fit, make his case to start and lead the way next year as we look to kick on and compete at the top level.