Report: Wolves open talks to sign £53m ace after Everton withdraw their offer

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Wolverhampton Wanderers have opened talks over a deal for Atletico Madrid flop Thomas Lemar after Premier League rivals Everton withdrew their interest, according to Le10 Sport.

With James Rodriguez shaking off the rust and already threatening to become the finest player to wear Everton blue since the turn of the century, Carlo Ancelotti appears to have put the finishing touches on a new-look Toffees front line.

The Italian has only one more transfer wish before the October deadline – a new centre-back rather than another forward – and that means Lemar will not be arriving at Goodison Park after all.

Le10 Sport claims that the Merseyside giants have dropped their interest in the 2018 World Cup winner.

But the same cannot be said of Wolves.

Nuno Espirito Santo’s uber-ambitious side appear to be stepping up their pursuit of a winger who is crying out for a fresh start after two nightmare years at the Wanda Metropolitano.

Lemar is represented not by Gestifute but by the Kemari agency. Yet that does not mean Jorge Mendes will not be playing a major role in a deal to take the former Monaco star to Molineux, with the super-agent a powerful presence at both Wolves and Atletico.

Wolves have already snapped up one big-name player from a European giant this week and, with talks now underway, Lemar could join Nelson Semedo in England over the next few days.

This comes after FootMercato claimed that Lemar had rejected a move to Porto due to his desire to seal a Premier League switch as soon as possible.

A hugely talented footballer who inspired Monaco to the Ligue 1 title in 2017 alongside Kylian Mbappe and Bernardo Silva, a pragmatic Atletico side never looked like the right fit for a free spirit renowned for his creativity rather than his work rate.

The £53 million play-maker has produced just three goals and three assists in 53 La Liga matches under Diego Simeone.