Presenter Jack Collins was joined by journalists Dean Jones and Sam Tighe on the latest edition of Bleacher Report’s Football Ranks podcast and the panel spent some time discussing Matt Doherty’s move from Wolverhampton Wanderers to Tottenham Hotspur during the show.
As per Transfermarkt, Wolves have sold the Republic of Ireland international to Spurs. Doherty had been a Wolves player since 2010 when he joined the Old Gold from Dublin-based club Bohemians for a fee of £81k.
The 28-year-old’s move to Spurs comes after he had enjoyed two positive back-to-back seasons in the Premier League with Wolves.
In the 2018/19 Premier League campaign, the right-back scored four goals, provided five assists and ended the season as the Old Gold’s joint-highest rated player to have made more than one appearance in the league, as per WhoScored.
Last season, Doherty scored four goals and provided three assists in the Premier League, ending that term as Wolves’ fifth-highest rated player in England’s top-flight.
With that in mind, it may be fair to say that Doherty has played a significant role for Nuno Espirito Santo’s side in recent seasons and in a recent article reporting on his transfer to Spurs, The Guardian also stated that the Irishman was a ‘key part of the club’s rise’ in recent years, which they stated makes his move to Spurs ‘something of a surprise.’
During this recent edition of the Bleacher Report Football Ranks podcast, Tighe discussed Wolves’ decision to sell Doherty to Spurs and he shared that he believes football agent Jorge Mendes, who has had a notable working relationship with Wolves since Fosun International’s takeover, may have played a key role in this move happening.
He said: “I was trying to rationalise it from Wolves’ perspective, and the only thing I could come to was – well, they’re run by Jorge Mendes, Jose Mourinho is a Jorge Mendes client – I wonder if he’s moving his assets on, here.
“I wonder if Wolves have actually, finally experienced the other side of the Jorge Mendes-run philosophy, whereas up until now it’s been nothing but positives. That’s basically all I could find to rationalise it, because it doesn’t make sense to sell Doherty for £15m, otherwise.”
Is Doherty worth more than the fee that Wolves sold him for?
YES
NO
TIF Thoughts…
As the journalist explained, Spurs manager Mourinho is a client of Mendes, and with that in mind, as well as the Portuguese agent’s relationship with Wolves, it may be understandable why Tighe believes Mendes may have played a significant role in this transfer happening.
Regardless of why they chose to sell him, it’s clear that Doherty was an important player for Wolves in recent years so hopefully, for the Old Gold, they have got a suitable replacement lined up, or else the Irishman’s departure could leave a big hole in their side.