Wolves were mentioned by Martin Keown earlier today as he watched Romain Saiss in action for Morocco against Canada at the 2022 World Cup.
What’s the story?
Well, the 56-year-old questioned why Bruno Lage allowed the 32-year-old to leave Molineux back in May.
Saiss was not actually sold, but his contract simply expired after six years at Wolves.
According to The Athletic, Wolves offered the Morocco international a new contract, although his wage demands were said to be above what the club were willing to pay, and he eventually joined Besiktas.
However, Keown clearly believes Wolves should have stumped up the cash, after watching Saiss defend heroically for Morocco as they qualified for the World Cup Round of 16.
Speaking live on commentary duty for BBC Two as Morocco recorded a 2-1 win over Canada, Keown said: “We’ve seen Saiss for Wolves playing in various positions including in midfield. He’s playing at the back here and he is very commanding. I was very surprised to see him leave Wolves, they don’t look any better for it.”
As FotMob shows, the man let go by Wolves made four clearances against Canada, as well as seven recoveries and 33 passes on a day where he and West Ham colossus Nayef Aguerd defended superbly.
Wolves miss experience of Romain Saiss
In truth, Wolves certainly don’t look any better for losing Saiss – as well as Conor Coady – as they currently find themselves sat bottom of the Premier League with just two wins from 15 games.
The experienced duo clearly offered a lot behind the scenes at Molineux, even if their ability to make an impact on the pitch was starting to wane with age – we strongly believe Wolves would not be bottom of the Premier League had they kept the pair.
Every side needs leaders, and to offload two in one summer really was a poor decision from Lage.
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