Flamengo coach Vitor Pereira admits that the Brazilian outfit will now need to find a replacement for Joao Gomes as Wolves close in on a £15 million deal for the Premier League-bound defensive midfielder, speaking to Coluna do Fla.
It’s been all change at Molineux recently. Julen Lopetegui is the new head coach. Mat Hobbs, the new sporting director.
And, with their Premier League status on the line, the first transfer window of the Lopetegui and Hobbs era is already shaping up to be one of Wolves’ busiest and most hectic since returning to the top-flight under Nuno Espirito Santo.
Matheus Cunha has already arrived from Atletico Madrid for a club-record £44 million. Mario Lemina, formerly of Southampton and Fulham, also signed on the dotted line from Nice. Wolverhampton Wanderers could take their number of mid-season additions from two to four before Tuesday’s FA Cup third-round replay with Liverpool, meanwhile; Joao Gomes and Paris Saint-German misfit Pablo Sarabia jetting in for medicals.
Wolves are close to signing Flamengo’s Joao Gomes
According to the Daily Mail, Gomes touched down in England on Saturday night, a few hours after Daniel Podence’s goal secured a vital win over relegation rivals West Ham United.
And Pereira now finds himself under pressure to replace a man who, at the age of just 21, arrives at Molineux with six trophies on his CV, including a Copa Libertadores winners’ medal.
“A coach is a person who has to find solutions. I’ll try to find one,” says Pereira, who held talks with Everton before the appointment of Frank Lampard in 2022.
“The matter is handed over to the board. Our strategy is designed internally, and cannot be made public. It will be dealt with within the club.”
Wolves will reportedly pay £15 million for Gomes; a snarling, bone-chewing ‘bloodhound’ who averages more successful tackles per 90 minutes (3.2) than anyone currently at Lopetegui’s disposal (WhoScored). Of all the players in the Premier League, only Tyler Adams and Joao Palhinha can boast better ball-winning statistics.
Gomes, alongside the experienced Lemina, strengthen Lopetegui’s engine room no end. Boubacar Traore is out of action for another couple of weeks. Joao Moutinho, at 36, is no longer the force of old.
Ruben Neves and Matheus Nunes, meanwhile, may now play a more advanced role; Gomes and Lemina offering serious protection in behind.
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