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Bertrand Traore: Aston Villa complete £17m signing of Lyon forward

  /  autty

Aston Villa have signed forward Bertrand Traore from Lyon on a four-year contract after agreeing a deal worth £17m plus £2m in add-ons.

Traore, who knows Villa coach John Terry from his time at Chelsea, becomes their fourth major signing of the window.

Villa have already broken their transfer record to sign Ollie Watkins from Brentford on a five-year deal, while Matty Cash has also joined on a five-year deal from Nottingham Forest and goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez has arrived from Arsenal.

The 25-year-old has experience of playing in the Champions League for the French club last season, scoring four times in 32 appearances in all competitions.

"We're delighted that Bertrand has chosen to come to Villa," said Villa boss Dean Smith. "He's a player with immense talent who will really enhance our attacking options."

Traore enjoyed his most productive spell for the club in his first year in France, scoring 17 times during the 2017-18 season.

Villa have been actively looking for a new forward and were linked with a move for Werder Bremen's Milot Rashica.

The German club want a fee in the region of £18.5m (€20m) for the Kosovo international, who was linked to RB Leipzig earlier this summer.

Aston Villa 2020/21: A season to consolidate?

Having survived by the skin of their teeth, Aston Villa now have a platform to build on in the Premier League.

Whether that's with talisman Jack Grealish, or with the funds his transfer could generate, remains to be seen, but the feeling is the club have got the hardest part out of the way already: Premier League survival in their first season back.

It was an odd campaign for Dean Smith's Villa - big summer spending, lots of hope, then injury, tactical naivety and a lack of cohesion. But it culminated in a valiant effort to secure survival on the last day. One thing is for sure, expectation at Villa Park is big, and fans won't be expecting another dog fight. The focus on 2020/21 is build, build, build.

Full Villa season preview here.

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