Espanyol sporting director Francisco Rufete is convinced that reported Wolves and Watford target Wu Lei will stay this summer despite the Catalan club’s relegation from La Liga, while speaking to Marca.
Whether the signing of Wu Lei would be for financial or sporting reasons is anyone’s guess.
Wolves’ Chinese owners would surely love nothing more than to bring the Chinese Super League’s all-time record goal-scorer to Molineux; not least because the Shanghai SIPG hero is nothing short of a legend in the Far East.
Espanyol shirts flew of the shelves in China thanks to Wu Lei’s presence, after all.
Marca reported in June that Wolves were in talks to sign the diminutive striker while Watford, according to The Mail, had also expressed an interest.
Having shunned countless offers from elsewhere during 12 years as the talismanic top scorer at Shanghai SIPG, this is a player who proves that loyalty can still be found in an era of player power and transfer requests.
“No offer has come and we think he can help us next year,” says Rufete, the former Spain international.
Speaking to Xinhua recently, Wu Lei admitted himself that he would happily stay in Catalonia in an attempt to fire Espanyol back to the big time at the first attempt.
After a disastrous 2019/20, in which Los Periquitos tallied four managers, five wins and a measure 23 points, they have been relegated for the first time since 1993.
It was, as you might imagine, the worst season in Espanyol’s entire history.
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