Chelsea return a possibility, claims Lyon's Traore

Lyon striker Bertrand Traore harbours ambitions of returning to the Premier League and claims he could even move back to former club Chelsea in the future.

The 22-year-old ended a four-year spell at Stamford Bridge when he joined Lyon for £9 million in June after spending the 2016-17 season on loan at Ajax.

Traore said a lack of first-team opportunities at Chelsea, where he made just four Premier League starts, left him with no choice but to seek a transfer.

"Going from Chelsea was the best decision for me," Traore told the Daily Mail. "I am enjoying myself.

"As a young player you can only improve if you are playing every week. I enjoyed my time at Chelsea and when I had opportunities to show what I could do on the pitch, I took them with both hands. But there weren't any guarantees I would play.

"I would be happy if it was me in the Chelsea first-team playing every weekend, but this is football and you have to take decisions. Along with Chelsea, I took the decision to sign for Lyon and I am happy with that."

The Burkina Faso international was asked whether he might follow in the footsteps of David Luiz and Didier Drogba by returning for a second spell at Chelsea, and he replied: "Why not, it is up to me to develop and progress as a player and prove that I am good enough to play in the Premier League.

"Others went back, it is a possibility. I have to focus on Lyon, do my best and see what I do in the future."

Traore scored against Premier League opposition when he got the winner in Lyon's 2-1 victory over Everton in the Europa League – a competition he knows well after reaching last season's final with Ajax.



10 - Bertrand Traore has been directly involved in 10 goals in just 15 starts in the Europa League (six goals, four assists). Heeled. pic.twitter.com/wIssOu3bZQ
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) October 19, 2017




"It was an amazing result," he said. "We didn't start well in the competition but going to Everton and getting a victory is a big achievement.

"Playing in the final last year against United was a dream. At this stage, you don't realise how big the Europa League gets. The further you go in the tournament, the more you see it."