Wolverhampton Wanderers have already made a few moves in the summer transfer window but they are yet to replace the recently departed Matt Doherty, though that could soon change…
What’s the word?
According to A Bola, Porto have rejected Wolves’ latest bid for winger Jesus Corona, which is thought to be around €24m (£22m) and they still remain interested in signing him before next month’s deadline.
They claim that the Portuguese champions are unwilling to budge from his €30m release clause, meaning Jeff Shi is going to have to pay around £27.5m in order to clinch Nuno Santo’s target.
The Midlands outfit have already signed young striker Fabio Silva and Vitinha on loan from Porto this summer.
Doherty replacement?
Nuno will surely not be happy with the exit of Doherty for just £15m last month as he’s been a key cog to his system at Molineux over the past few seasons.
Marcal has been brought in from Champions League semi-finalists Lyon, so perhaps that could see Jonny shift back to his old right wing-back role, but he’s still out through injury, so that’s not a quick solution by any means.
The 27-year-old seems a perfect fit as he’s able to play anywhere along the wing and he’s very much in the mould of the Irishman, if not better.
In all competitions last season, the Mexican international racked up a whopping 21 assists, proving to be one of Porto’s most valuable creative outlets.
Across the Primeira Liga and the Europa League, Corona averaged 3.1 dribbles, 1.8 key passes, 1.7 interceptions and 1.6 crosses per game, via WhoScored.
One of his former youth coaches, Manuel Guerra, describes the wing-back as a “very tricky, very cheeky player,” adding: “He had great control and he was extraordinarily good at shielding the ball. He was also very quick and he had tremendous dribbling ability.”
Jeff Shi should stump up the extra £5m or so to resolve what will soon become a big issue for Wolves. Otherwise, it could well be a season of Adama Traore at right wing-back, which will hardly benefit their attacking prospects much.
AND in other news, Shi would be making a mistake with reported Wolves target…