Wolves were ‘very close’ to luring Dario Osorio to the Premier League in the summer transfer window and may have scouted the winger during Chile’s 3-0 defeat to England’s U20 side in Spain this week, according to El Cancha.
As you might expect, given that Osorio was the only member of that Chile side to have represented his country at senior level, the so-called ‘new Angel di Maria’ was their star performer during an otherwise disappointing display on Spanish soil; Liam Delap and Sam Edozie among the scorers in a comfortable Three Lions win.
One of the brightest young forwards in South America, the two-footed Osorio has been linked with the likes of Manchester City and Real Madrid in recent months.
It was Wolverhampton Wanderers, however, who came the closest to securing his signature before September’s transfer deadline. Osorio, El Cancha say, was on the verge of joining for a rumoured fee of around £4.5 million.
Wolves are big fans of Chile international Dario Osorio
Now, the 18-year-old could still be on his way to Molineux in the new year, of course. One chapter might have closed, but the story is not over.
Mathew Hobbs, Wolves’ chief scout and head of recruitment, has already travelled across the Atlantic to conduct negotiations with Universidad de Chile; Osorio’s current employers.
There are a couple of obstacle standing in Wolves’ way, it seems. Universidad continue to hold out for a substantial transfer fee. Furthermore, they also want a sizeable sell-on clause to be included in Osorio’s contract.
“(Osorio to Wolves would be) the largest transfer in Chilean football for more than a decade,” reporter Juan Cristobal Guarello writes in La Tercera.
“Dario Osorio is good. Really good. He carries the ball well. He knows how to turn, he has power, technique and strikes hits the ball in an extraordinary way. With the right support and work, he can reach his full potential.”
Osorio, a direct, goalscoring wideman in the Pedro Neto mould, has scored six times in 22 league games this season for a relegation-threatened Universidad de Chile outfit.
“Am I ready to make the leap abroad? Yes, I’m ready,” Osorio himself explains. “I try to continue working, to gain confidence. I don’t know what’s going to happen.”
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