OPINION
While Wolverhampton Wanderers might have secured some brilliant deals in the recent transfer windows to bolster the first team at Molineux, there have also been some off-field agreements which have been made to give the club a boost in the future.
While many fans will be more focused on the first team as they fly high in the Premier League – thanks to the likes of new signings Rui Patricio and Joao Moutinho – Wolves have also been doing what they can to improve their standings at academy and reserve level, including a partnership with Spanish Segunda B side Futbol Club Jumilla.
The deal has seen a host of young Wolves talents move from the midlands to Murcia on Spain’s south east coast, with no less than nine moving from the first team and the under-23s to try and pick up more first team action overseas.
However, as stated by the Birmingham Mail, the club were actually pushing for their young stars to move to Spain over other deals that were made for them, as was the case with Donovan Wilson and Jack Ruddy, and that is a move which puts the club’s future in the shape of their next wave of young talent on the line.
How is playing at the third level of Spanish football, where the competition is going to be at a lesser level than any of England’s league tiers, going to be better for their development and growth at Wolves?
As stated by Jumilla owner Steven Lee, the deal suits the Spaniards more than Wolves, stating to the Birmingham Mail: “We think that with the partnership of Wolverhampton that even as a small club like Jumilla we might have a chance to not just survive but to maybe go further.
“It’s difficult to attract good enough players.”
It is a pointless deal for Wolves right now, and some of those youngsters would be better off staying in England, plying their trade in League One and League Two in a bid to get to grips with English football.
Yes, there is a case for foreign learning but that has to come at a higher level than at the present, and for now Wolves are gambling on their future starlets’ future simply to help another club friendly with the owners.