Wolves to hit double figures as bargain Portuguese link surfaces in Greece
Wolves could be set to add a tenth Portuguese player to their ranks after news emerged of links to Olympiacos defender Ruben Semedo.
The West Midlanders have a plethora of stars from Portugal in the squad thanks to links with agent Jorge Mendes. And Semedo is another of the 55-year-old’s clients with itchy feet this summer. The 27-year-old has been with the Greek club for two years after they paid Villarreal €4.5m in June 2019.
The Portugal international has seen plenty of action, with 57 Super League Greece appearances. And it has been successful spell in Piraeus, winning back-to-back league titles.
However, rumours persist that the former Sporting star is keen to move on. One of the main reasons is that Olympiacos’s hopes of playing in the Champions League are already over.
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They lost to Bulgarian outfit Ludogorets in the qualifiers last week. Semedo does have experience of playing in Europe’s elite club competition while at Sporting.
However, Wolves cannot offer him any brand of European football for 2021-22 after finishing 13th last season. But playing in the Premier League reportedly seems preferable to another campaign in Greece.
Semedo is primarily a centre-back but can also operate as a defensive midfielder.
Semedo a bargain addition
The man with three Portugal caps still has two years of his current deal to run and Olympiacos value him at £12m. However, Portuguese outlet, Mais Futebol, are suggesting he could be available for around £9m.
That would certainly tempt Wolves chief Bruno Lage who has not spent big during the off-season. Rayan Ait-Nouri has made his loan deal permanent in the West Midlands while Yerson Mosquera arrived from Colombia side Atletico Nacional.
Wolves purchased goalkeeper Jose Sa from Olympiacos and Bendeguz Bolla arrived from Hungarian side Fehervar. However, the 21-year-old will spend the campaign on loan with Swiss club Grasshoppers.
Therefore it makes sense for Lage to dip into the club’s coffers before the window closes. Semedo was linked with a move to Liverpool last winter when Jurgen Klopp was desperate for defensive help.
The Reds were without Virgil van Dijk and Joel Matip and were linked with several players. He seemed open to the switch at the time but nothing materialised and he remained in Greece.
But, with Mendes on the case, a transfer to the Black Country seems much more likely to happen.
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