According to reports in the Evening Standard, Chelsea are ready to reignite their interest in signing Middlesbrough winger Adama Traore this summer, but the Championship outfit are ready to demand a £20m fee.

The story says that the Blues enquired about a possible purchase of the 21-year-old in the future when they were negotiating the sale of Patrick Bamford to Boro during the January transfer window, but were told he would cost £20m.

The Evening Standard say London rivals West Ham United are also said to be keen on the former Barcelona starlet, who has now suffered successive relegations from the Premier League with Aston Villa and the Teesside outfit.

While Middlesbrough may be willing to sell Traore for the right price, they are ready to play hardball over a fee with the Spaniard still having three years left on his contract.

Nevertheless, Antonio Conte may feel that the winger would be a useful acquisition for the Premier League champions, and the Italian could step up his efforts to bring him to Stamford Bridge in the coming weeks.

Here are three reasons Chelsea should get a £20m deal for Traore done…

Pace and dribbling ability

While he may have failed to get on the scoresheet and provided just one assist for Middlesbrough last season, Traore still impressed with a number of aspects of his game.

The 21-year-old has an abundance of pace that frightens opposition defenders, while he is also a brilliant dribbler with the ball.

The former Barcelona starlet showed he isn’t afraid to have a go at his full-back after completing a remarkable 136 take-ons in 27 Premier League appearances last term, with his final product needing to be worked on.

Impact from the bench

While he probably wouldn’t be an instant fixture in the starting line-up if he did move to Stamford Bridge this summer, there is no doubt that Traore could have a huge impact from the substitutes’ bench.

The 21-year-old would most likely fill in for Pedro on the right wing, but if he improved the defensive side of his game he also has the potential to play at right wing-back too.

If Chelsea are chasing a goal or playing on the counter attack, there is no doubt that the winger’s pace and dribbling ability would be a hugely useful weapon.

Potential

While we have mentioned that Traore’s end product is perhaps lacking right now – as shown by his tally of goals and assists for Aston Villa and Middlesbrough over the course of the last two seasons – there is no doubt that there is a lot of potential there that needs to be developed.

At 21 years of age, he has plenty of time to improve and you certainly don’t play for Barcelona unless you have something about you.

If Antonio Conte can successfully coach the winger as he has done with Victor Moses over the course of the last year, he could have a very special player on his hands.

Do you agree, Chelsea fans? Let us know below.