Wolverhampton Wanderers want Portuguese midfielder Joao Moutinho to stay another year at Molineux, according to Dean Jones.
According to a report from Portuguese outlet Jornal de Noticias, UEFA Europa Conference League champions Roma are looking to prise the 35-year-old away from the West Midlands.
Currently, Moutinho and Wolves are locked in talks over a new deal.
The club want to keep the veteran, and the player himself is said to want to extend his stay.
However, journalist Tim Spiers recently stated that the sticking point is about the length of the contract. with the midfielder wanting two years, and the club only want to offer one.
Meanwhile, TalkSport has stated that Wolves have been linked with Joao Palhinha, who may be being lined up to replace Ruben Neves.
However, Jones has stated that Bruno Lage will find it tough to bring in players who can replicate what Neves and Moutinho have done for the club, and believes they will therefore try to renew Moutinho’s contract at Molineux for another season.
He told GiveMeSport: “It’s a really difficult one for Wolves to keep up this model that they’ve built and find players that continue to fit in it. You do wonder whether it’s even going to be possible.
“Obviously, they do not want Moutinho to go. They want one more year out of him, the contract’s been difficult to come to an agreement on.”
TIF Thoughts on Moutinho…
Wolves would be losing a huge player if Moutinho left Molineux this summer, and it will of course be incredibly damaging if they were to lose both the 144-time Portuguese international as well as Neves before next season starts.
The Portimão-born ace has shown he is still fit enough to play in the Premier League and is a model professional as one of the elder statesmen in the dressing room.
If a two-year deal is the only way he would agree to stay, then perhaps Wolves should bow to his demands whilst also boosting the middle of the park with added quality.
The £2.25m-rated veteran doesn’t have to be a regular in the starting XI for the whole time, and his leadership both on and off the pitch would potentially be invaluable to Lage in the long term.