Wolves have joined Arsenal in the race to sign Ridle Baku with reports claiming that the Premier League outfit would ‘love’ to sign Wolfsburg’s Bundesliga flyer.
After a couple of inconsistent seasons in Old Gold, Nelson Semedo could be about to pay with his place in Julen Lopetegui’s XI.
Wolves appear to be scouring the market for a new right-sided full-back, Baku joining Barcelona misfit Sergino Dest on the Wanderers radar.
That is according to Wolfsburger Allgemeine Zeitung; the German publication claiming that the £17 million-rated Baku has emerged as a leading target for a Wolverhampton Wanderers side who can start planning for the summer after staving off the threat of relegation under former Spain and Real Madrid boss Lopetegui.
Wolves join Arsenal in Ridle Baku race
Capped four times by Germany; 25-year-old Baku has been one of the Bundesliga’s most impressive full-backs for the last 18 months or so. Athletic and attack-minded, the former Mainz youngster has five goals and three assists to his name in 2022/23.
In three years at Wolfsburg, Baku has found the net 16 times from a supposedly ‘defensive’ role.
WAZ reports that Wolves would relish the chance to bring Baku to the Black Country. The men from Molineux could face competition from Arsenal; Sky reporter Florian Plettenberg insisting that the Gunners are also big fans of the 5ft 9ins dynamo.
Baku would give Mikel Arteta a more natural option at right-back. Ben White, while so impressive in a wider role, is still more comfortable at a centre-half. Something his performance against the rampaging Kaoru Mitoma during Sunday’s 3-0 defeat at home to Brighton attested to.
‘The Premier League is on my mind’
Baku, meanwhile, is making no secret of his interest in a move to the Premier League.
“You never know what will happen,” he told BILD last year. “I’m not a fan of making promises. If someone comes and puts an immoral fee on the table, then you think about it. You deal with it.
“I’ve been playing here in the Bundesliga for a long time. That’s when you start thinking about where you might want to play in the future. I’m open to that. Going abroad is an option for me.
“The Premier League is always on my mind. Perhaps Spain or Italy. Those are leagues where you could imagine playing.”
Bayern Munich director Hasan Salihamidzic, meanwhile, admitted that Baku was on the radar of the perennial Bundesliga champions not so long ago.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
