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When Armand Traore was cast off by Nottingham Forest in February, he surely couldn't have imagined that less than two months later, he's be preparing for promotion with Cardiff City and a spot at the World Cup with Senegal. Yet after returning to the Teranga Lions fold during the ongoing international break, the left-back's bizarre season looks set to take another unlikely twist. After 18 months of service for Forest, Traore was one of several casualties of the club's decision to replace Mark Warburton with Aitor Karanka earlier this season. The Spaniard, aiming to bounce back after a muddled spell with Middlesbrough, offloaded a swathe of players and made 10 new signings after an underwhelming defeat by Preston North End at the start of his tenure. Traore, only halfway into a three-year contract, was shipped out, with the wideman joining Cardiff City until the season's end. "For some reason [Karanka] came at the club, we didn't really chat or anything and two weeks later I got told I wasn't going to play," Traore told the Nottingham Post. "I didn't get a reason or anything. You deal with it by believing in yourself. At first it's hard to take, nobody likes rejection. "It's a game of opinions and you just want to keep moving forward and that's what I've done," he added. "Especially when Neil Warnock was interested, there was a lot to be excited about. "At first I was a bit hurt because I wanted to play, but I quickly got over it and when my agent told me he'd spoken to Warnock I was very excited again. I was buzzing."  While Forest have stopped the rot - and are unbeaten in seven - Traore's prospects for the second half of the season have been transformed, and he's now eyeing a second promotion from the Championship after previously climbing up to the top flight with Queens Park Rangers in 2014. Reunited with Neil Warnock at Cardiff, the duo find themselves second on 76 points. They may be six off leaders Wolverhampton Wanderers - albeit with a game in hand - but it would require a significant slump for third-placed Fulham to close their seven-point gap considering the Bluebirds have won their last seven. Promotion - and a permanent deal at Cardiff - would give the 28-year-old another shot at the Premier League, and the chance to redeem a career that hasn't reached the heights promised when he joined Arsenal from AS Monaco in August 2005. Back then, he was being compared to Manchester United and France left-back Patrice Evra, another alumni of the Monaco academy, but Traore struggled to break through in North London, despite an encouraging loan at Portsmouth and a series of lively displays in the 2009-10 season. Injury denied him the chance to make a strong start to life at Juventus after an unlikely loan move to Turin in August 2010, and a year later, his reputation at Arsenal was shattered as he endured a miserable afternoon in the Gunners' 8-2 demolition by Manchester United. He moved to QPR two days later, although further injuries, attitude problems, and doubts about his best position have too often threatened to undermine his progress. Internationally, the versatile left-sider represented France at various youth levels up to U-21, but accepted an invitation to represent Senegal in 2011.  He totalled five appearances for the Lions of Teranga over the next few years, and was a non-playing member of the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations squad, but was largely overlooked during Alain Giresse's tenure with the national side. With the World Cup looming, and Senegal left-back Saliou Ciss struggling with injuries of his own, Traore realised his wish and was handed the opportunity to return to the fold by coach Aliou Cisse. He made his comeback and picked up his sixth cap in the 1-1 draw with Uzbekistan on Friday - playing for 16 minutes - and with Pape Souare also still on the comeback trail following his devastating car crash in September 2016, could be primed to play a key role for the Lions in Russia. "It was great to put on the colours of Senegal again," he told journalists as per Foot 221. "It's a pride to rediscover this passion and, as well, it's a great squad. "We're doing our best to respect to the maximum the advice of the coach during the training sessions, and God willing, we'll stay in this dynamic until the end." After making a brief cameo in the draw against Uzbekistan, Traore told Dakar Actu [as per Senego] that he's primed to take to the field again when Senegal face Bosnia-Herzegovina in France on Tuesday. "I'd ready, the mood [in the camp] hasn't changed," he began. "It'll be a hard game, but we'll try and continue with what the coach wants us to do. "It's just another preparation game, and I think we're going to try some [new] things." Something that Cisse may well be tempted to try is starting Traore from the off against Bosnia. With Souare still to return to Premier League action with Crystal Palace, and with Adama Mbengue out of favour, Traore's offensive contributions from left-back may still represent a valuable attacking weapon for the Lions. The 28-year-old is unlikely to truly realise the talent that once had him being heralded as France's long-term successor to Evra, but he could yet mark his frustrating international career with a star turn at the World Cup.
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