Sheffield United have not yet seen their new signing Bénie Traoré in action in pre-season because of visa processing issues. But, there has been an advancement in the processing stage and he is due to fly to England soon.
The 20-year-old Ivorian signed from Hacken a couple of weeks ago, he is yet to wear the red and white shirt. Despite that, there won’t be an issue with Traoré in terms of fitness and sharpness because the Swedish league plays through the summer. The attacker most recently played for Hacken on July 2nd.
Paul Heckingbottom told Yorkshire Live:
“I could be 100% off on this, but we have had a text message,” Heckingbottom explained. “Tom Little has been in touch and Bénie says he should have his passport today [Saturday].
He added:
“If that is the case and he has, then we will get him on a flight tomorrow [Sunday]. We were hoping it would just be a couple of days and we would get working with him.”
Although the forward will not have missed out on fitness and sharpness, he will have missed out on the benefits of experiencing in-play patterns and getting to know his teammates strengths and weaknesses. That being said, Bénie Traoré could make his long-awaited debut in Sheffield United’s pre-season game against Stuttgart on Saturday, which will be his first and last chance to get to grips with his role in the team before the opening Premier League game.