Scott Sellars: Adama Traore deal was right for Wolves
Wolves' technical director Scott Sellars believes Adama Traore's loan to Barcelona was the 'right deal for all parties' and gives the Spaniard the chance to 'promote himself' for a potential summer move even if Barcelona do not buy him permanently.
The winger was in talks for a new deal at Wolves for some time but turned down the club's advances before securing a dream loan to the Catalan giants, who have a £29million option to sign him in the summer.
Earlier this month, Barcelona president Joan Laporta cast some doubt on whether they would take that option by admitting the club are in a 'difficult financial situation'.
Traore will have just one year left on his Wolves deal by the summer and regardless of whether Barcelona sign him permanently, Sellars believes Wolves made the right call in letting him go.
He said: "Adama didn’t want to sign a contract at Wolves, so it was the right deal for all parties. A good deal is a deal that is good for the club, good for the player and his agent and for the club he is going to.
"We had to look at the situation with Adama. He wasn't playing every week and players returning from injury.
"We knew for a few weeks we would find it tough but once we got the players back we'd be fine.
"He was offered a contract, wouldn't sign it, so we have to look elsewhere. If a player doesn't want to be here then I'd rather we focus on helping the ones that do want to be here.
"There's no obligation but there's an option to buy. If Barcelona can struggle financially then that situation is across football at the moment. Not a lot of people have a lot of money at the moment, so that type of deal is happening a lot more.
"Over the next two or three years, with crowds back and things calm down, there may be more obligations to buy.
"But we felt it was a great opportunity for Adama to play for Barcelona and be successful and promote himself.”
A section of the fan base criticised the move not to include an obligation to buy Traore, but Sellars insists Wolves had to respect his decision to move on and get the best deal they could.
He added: "You'll never have the perfect scenario in every transfer and not every player will always be on the right contract or leaving at the right time.
"We just accept it is part of it. Adama has been offered a really good contract, he decided he didn't want to stay and that's his decision. That's up to him and fair enough, we don't fall out about it.
"Adama has always given everything he has, even when he's turned down his contract he's never waned from being at his maximum in training.
"As a human being he is different class, is well respected and well liked, but we have to respect that he doesn't want to sign a new contract."
