Championship leaders Wolverhampton Wanderers have the money and connections to make the prospect of signing Andre Gomes realistic.
Just 12 months ago, the idea of Wolverhampton Wanderers going head-to-head with two of the Premier League’s most well supported clubs for the signature of a Barcelona midfielder would have had Paul Lambert chortling in the dugout.
These days, however, it seems that anything is possible at Molineux. Chinese investors Fosun have huge plans for Wolves and are ready and willing to put their money where their mouth is.
The £15.8 million signing of Porto’s Ruben Neves in the summer was the third time the club have shattered their own transfer record since the summer of 2016. Neves is also the most expensive player in the history of the Championship.
And reports in O Jogo on Tuesday linked the runaway league leaders with an even more sensational swoop. AC Milan’s Andre Silva was reportedly on Wolves’ radar, just a few months after Portugal’s first choice centre-forward moved to the San Siro for £34 million.
So perhaps it is no longer impossible to suggest that Wolves could join Tottenham and West Ham in targeting Andre Gomes this month. After all, you can probably guess who the Portugal play-maker’s agent is.
The Mail stated in August that the London duo were both aiming to free Gomes from his back-up role at the Camp Nou – only for Barcelona to pull out of a deal as they failed to sign a replacement, thought to be Philippe Coutinho.
You won’t need reminding, however, that Coutinho has now completed his £142 million to the Camp Nou. And Catalan paper Sport has now claimed that Gomes has asked to leave amid renewed interest from Tottenham.
Considering that Barca need to balance the books, Gomes will likely get his wish with the former Valencia ace valued at around £20 million. Financial Fair Play allowing, he would be within Wolves’ massive budget.
And, who knows, if Neves, Diego Jota and manager Nuno Espirito Santo can be tempted to swap the Champions League for the Championship, perhaps Gomes’ head could be turned, too.
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