The rebirth of Bertrand Traoré

From the depths of Aston Villa in the English Premier League to the summit of the Dutch Eredivisie: it is a remarkable trajectory for Bertrand Traoré, the former Chelsea left winger. This summer he chose to turn the page on Spain, where he had a six-month stint at Villarreal, and set off on a new adventure with his old club, Ajax Amsterdam.

Sensations and emotions

The proof: Bertrand Traoré is in sparkling form at the start of the 2024-2025 season at Ajax. In ten games, the captain of Burkina Faso's Étalons has scored two goals and provided three assists. In the Netherlands he has also found an atmosphere he knows well, as well as some fellow countrymen. "He's a player with enormous talent, and I'm not the one who is going to discover that today. Sometimes things don't work out somewhere and a change is needed, but I believe he also had some great moments at Villarreal. You never know in the world of football, maybe he'll be very important for the whole season or maybe not. The only thing I know is that he's a good lad and a player who is different from most players," said Gaël Nikiema.

Traoré breaks his silence

In an interview given on 23 September to the programme Talents d'Afrique on Canal+, Bertrand Traoré chose his words carefully, in an impeccable PR exercise to win over the Étalons' many supporters. During the interview, he broke his silence on his exclusion since the arrival of Burkina Faso's new head coach, Brama Traoré. The Ajax Amsterdam forward acknowledged there were problems within the camp.

"It's been a long time, and of course I miss the national team, but that's football. I've been captain of this team since 2021. As captain, I have this role of being able to take a lot on my shoulders to protect this team. With the coach Brama Traoré, we've spoken on the phone twice since his appointment. Of course there are problems with the national team, there were problems and there will always be problems, but I think we'll sort these problems out as a family, internally," he said.

Asked about the nature of the problems within the Burkina Faso national football team, Bertrand Traoré swerved the question: "I'm not going to come here and air the national team's problems. I think we'll sort them out among ourselves in Burkina. I have to protect the group, the cohesion of the group. Given my status, I'm not best placed to come and talk about the team's problems here. I'm able to take a lot on my shoulders for the good of the group and the good running of Burkinabè football."

But Traoré said he was available for the national team and ready to return if called up. "Even tomorrow morning (Tuesday 24 September 2024, editor's note), I'd go to training here in Amsterdam to represent Burkina. I've now been playing for the Burkina national team for 13 years. I won't refuse to defend my country's colours because of a few individuals. I'm always available for my country. I've always told them, if they call me, I'm available, and if they don't call me, I'll be the Etalons' number one supporter," he confided.

Bertrand Traoré is back

Bertrand Traoré is back in the Burkina Faso national football team. The Étalons captain had not been picked since his last match on 30 January 2024, the Burkina Faso v Mali round of 16 tie at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations in Côte d'Ivoire. 240 days later, the Ajax player is returning to the national team fold. Brama Traoré has called up 25 players for the double-header against Burundi, on 10 and 13 October 2024, in qualifying for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations.