Wolves fans should be wary about potential £20m Bernd Leno move

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Premier League side Wolverhampton Wanderers are reportedly in talks with Bayer Leverkusen’s Bundesliga goalkeeper Bernd Leno.

Wolverhampton Wanderers fans are in dreamland right now.

The last time they were in the Premier League, Wolves were managed by Mick McCarthy and boasted a squad including the likes of Richard Stearman, Karl Henry and Roger Johnson. It is fair to say the class of 2018 should make a bigger impact on the top flight.

Wolves fans are seeing some of the greatest players in the club’s recent history strutting their stuff at Molineux, thanks to the investment of ownership group Fosun and the help of super-agent Jorge Mendes.

And, according to Fussball Transfers, they are now in talks to enhance an already talented squad with a German international goalkeeper. It is understood that Wolves have made contact with Bayer Leverkusen number one Bernd Leno ahead of a potential £20 million-plus move to the Black Country.

Understandably, the fans are entering a state of giddy delirium. But perhaps it is time they were brought back down to earth.

Leno might be a fine shot-stopper, a six-time German international who has been linked with bona fide European giants in Arsenal, Atletico Madrid and Napoli, too.

But for all the fine reflex stops, Leno is more Loris Karius than Manuel Neuer. He is a ‘keeper with real talent but a propensity for naive mistakes, whether it be spilling a simple shot, failing to claim a cross or making an ill-advised charge out of his penalty area.

In fact, Leno showed the other side of his game to the world in last summer’s Confederations Cup. He gifted Australia a goal in the opening group stage clash and was then dropped for the rest of the tournament.

At 26, the Leverkusen stopper has time on his side. But, right now, he is far from the finished article and Wolves would be taking a risk if they choose him ahead of the other options on the market.