Football journalist Peter O’Rourke has been sharing his thoughts on Wolves midfielder Ruben Neves and the possibility of him leaving the Midlands club this summer.
This comes after O’Rourke made an appearance on a recent video from The Football Terrace YouTube channel where he spoke about a number of transfer-related topics.
On the subject of Neves, who has been linked with a move to fellow Premier League side Arsenal in recent weeks, O’Rourke had this to say.
He said: “My understanding is Ruben Neves really figures highly on Arsenal’s wanted list this summer. I think that’s helped by the fact that Wolves are willing to sell the Portugal international.
“Obviously, Wolves didn’t do as well last season as they have done in previous seasons in the Premier League and there’s going to be big changes at Wolves this summer.
“We’ve already seen Nuno [Espirito Santo] leave as manager, and I think he was quite key for Ruben Neves. He helped attract him to the club in the first place. He was a key lieutenant for Nuno when he was in that Wolves midfield.
“I think Wolves maybe have a few financial problems as well, so they’re going to have to cash in on a few players, not just Neves, talk of [Adama] Traore possibly leaving as well.”
Wolves signed Neves back during the 2017 summer transfer window from Portuguese club FC Porto.
Since then, the 24-year-old, who is currently valued at £40.5 million according to Transfermarkt, has made 176 appearances for the Old Gold across all competitions, in which he has managed to score 20 goals and provide 10 assists along the way.
TIF Thoughts on Peter O’Rourke’s comment on Neves and a potential move away from Wolves this summer…
Taking into account the fact that only Conor Coady (191) made more appearances for Wolves under Nuno Espirito Santo than Neves (176), this backs up O’Rourke’s point about how important he was for the former Wolves manager and potentially why the question has been raised over his future at Molineux.
Would you be disappointed if Wolves sold Neves this summer?
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No
In our view, if Neves can get assurances from new Wolves manager Bruno Lage that he will be a crucial part of his team moving forward, then he should have no concerns about his future at the club unless he genuinely wants to move on and join another team such as Arsenal, who are reportedly interested in adding him to their squad – especially with current Gunners midfielder Granit Xhaka linked with a move away.
In other news: ‘He’ll be a massive player’ – Dean Windass makes bold call on Wolves ace amid exit rumours