Adama Traore started out as a skinny winger but became one of football's titans

Ask a football fan to describe Adama Traore and they will will probably tell tales of an explosive, fearsome winger with bruising strength and superhuman speed - albeit one who has never reached his potential.

Ask a defender to talk about unplayable forwards and some will name the Spaniard. Jan Vertonghen called him the toughest opponent of his career, while Jetro Willems said he was trickier to shackle than Cristiano Ronaldo.

He has the third-highest top speed in Premier League history, coming in at a whopping 23.5mph, and on the Barcelona website is listed at 13.5 stone, which would make him a cruiserweight in boxing.

Understandably, across a career in the stripes of Barcelona, Aston Villa, Middlesbrough, Wolves, and soon Fulham, Traore has tyrannised many a backline just by standing near them.

But it wasn't always like that.

In his first spell at Barcelona, traore was a skinny teenager, blessed with talent but no absurd physical attributes. How, then, did he become one of football's titans?

It had something to do with his mother. La madre de Adama. Fatoumata Traore, the doting parent key to his rise as a footballer.

After his first Spain cap in 2020, Traore declared to much surprise that he did not lift weights in the gym, saying his genetics make his muscles grow very fast to the point where he does not need to do them.

'I have gained in muscles with training, rest and food. Food is essential and I consider it a very important part of training,' he said.

The genius behind what he eats rests in the mind of his mum, who he called 'the best cook in the world'.

'I try to vary the amount of dishes and have a varied, healthy and balanced diet.

'I can eat a little paella as well as a typical Malian dish with peanut sauce and brown