You ready for the latest transfer link, Wolverhampton Wanderers fans?
Reports in Germany are suggesting that Wolves are in talks with Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen for goalkeeper Bernd Leno.
Leno has been named in Germany’s provisional World Cup squad for Russia this summer, where competition is stiff - he’s alongside Kevin Trapp of PSG, Manuel Neuer of Bayern Munich and Barcelona’s Marc-Andre ter Stegen.
Wolves appear keen to add another goalkeeper this summer, and are likely to scour the continent with the help of associate and super agent Jorge Mendes.
They’ve already been linked with a host of names, including Joe Hart, Jack Butland and Rui Patricio.
Leno is the latest name on the list.
The 26-year-old, who came through the ranks at Stuttgart, has been in the Leverkusen first team since 2011 and has made over 300 appearances in that time - that includes experience in the Champions League, too.
The report from Germany also hints at potential interest from Spain, too.
Atletico Madrid are supposedly wary of interest from PSG in their number one, Poland stopper Jan Oblak.
If they parted with Oblak, it’s believed manager Diego Simeone would target Leno, who he is a big fan of.
Leno, who it's thought would cost potential suitors around 20 million euros, is believed to be open to leaving Germany.
ANOTHER goalkeeping link
The latest name being linked with a move to Wolverhampton Wanderers this summer is Jose Sa.
The Porto goalkeeper, 25, played 19 times for the Portuguese champions this season when boss Sergio Conceicao decided to drop number Iker Casillas in October.
Sa played in five of Porto’s six Champions League group games this term, including against Liverpool when Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane ran riot.
Veteran Casillas regained his place in the side before the end of the season, relegating Sa back to the bench.
The Spanish legend has also recently agreed a new contract to remain at the Estádio do Dragão meaning that Sa will likely be a substitute once again next season.
It’s led to speculation that the stopper may be willing to move on this summer should the opportunity arise.
Sa, who has two more years left to run on his current Porto contract, is a client of Wolves associate Jorge Mendes’ Gestifute agency.
Wolves have been linked with a host of goalkeepers already this summer.
John Ruddy kept 24 clean sheets in 45 league matches last season and was named in the Championship’s Team of the Year, but Nuno Espirito Santo could look to add further competition between the sticks as the club prepares for their first Championship campaign since 2012.
The likes of Jack Butland, Joe Hart and Rui Patricio have been touted already this month.
One regret
Roger Johnson admits he shouldn’t have taken the captaincy when he arrived at Wolverhampton Wanderers because of the added pressure it brought.
Johnson was signed by Mick McCarthy in the summer of 2011 for around £7m from Birmingham City and the centre-back was immediately handed the armband that had previously been held by Karl Henry.
McCarthy said at the time: “I have decided to make the change and pass the armband on to Roger. I think it can be easier to captain the side from that position in the centre of defence where you can see everything in front of you and are perfectly placed to organise the team.
“Roger has carried that out successfully in the past and his leadership qualities will be of benefit to everyone.”
It didn’t work out as hoped.
Wanderers endured a dreadful following season, finishing bottom of the Premier League, and McCarthy was out of a job by February 2012.
Johnson, meanwhile, suffered a third successive relegation a year later when Wanderers completed their unwanted double dip to League One.
On reflection, the defender, who now plays for non-league Bromley, concedes he should never have become skipper because of the added expectation on top of the price-tag.
“I blame myself,” Johnson told the Telegraph . “I had a dip in form, in a team of people that had a dip in form. I was blocking shots and it was going in off me, I was making stupid errors that I never make.
“A regret is taking the captaincy when it was offered to me. It made my signing even bigger because I was the team captain and if things are going wrong the skipper has to answer for it.
“It was hard to dig people out and have an opinion on what was going wrong, because I was one of the things that wasn’t working.”
Released list
Goalkeeper Jon Flatt heads a list of young players who have been released by Wolverhampton Wanderers, the club have confirmed.
Flatt, 23, never made a first-team appearance for Wolves but did make the match-day squad on a number of occasions under Paul Lambert owing to injuries.
Local lad Flatt is one of 12 youngsters who have been released at the end of their contracts as preparations for Wanderers’ Premier League campaign step up.
“A lot of difficult decisions need to be made at this time of year,” Sporting Director Kevin Thelwell told the club’s official website.
“The fact that we’re releasing these players is no reflection on them as there are some really good footballers there.
“We’d like to wish them all the very best for the future and we’re going to all we can to try and help them find success in football or in sport moving forward.”
The full list of players released by Wolves
Jordan Allan, Dan Armstrong, Anthony Breslin, Nicu Carnat, Ross Finnie, Jon Flatt, Conor Levingston, Tomas Nogueira, Hakeem Odoffin, Adam Osbourne, Ryan Rainey and Jose Xavier.
Scholars retained
Kevin Berkoe, Aaron Crabtree, Kieran Feeney, Ray O’Sullivan, Taylor Perry, Terence Taylor, Callum Thompson and Taylor Townsend.
Scholars offered professional terms
Rory Brown, Ryan Giles, Diego Latte and Dion Sanderson.
Scholars released
Thomas Bexton, Brad Carr, Josh Hesson, Dominic Moan and Joel Whittingham.
All you need to know about Wolves now
On the move
Wolves-linked midfielder Pele has confirmed he is on the move this summer.
The Rio Ave man has confirmed to the press in Portugal that he’ll be moving on in the coming transfer window, and judging by his comments he appears bound for England.
The 26-year-old scored seven times in 31 appearances for Rio Ave in the recently ended season as the club finished fifth, behind the big four sides of Porto, Benfica, Sporting Lisbon and Braga.
There were reports recently that Wolves sent scouts to watch Pele as Rio Ave took on Chivas last month - he scored two penalties in a 2-1 victory.
The Portuguese press then reported last week that Wanderers had ‘practically concluded’ a deal worth around £9m.
Now the man himself has revealed his offers - and he’s expected to choose England, where much of his family is based.
“Yes, because I have received approaches and proposals from several clubs,” Pele told A Bola, via Sport Witness.
“I’m going to analyse the proposals with my family and choose the one that I want the most. I’m going to travel for the week, maybe it’s the most likely outcome, but I do not close doors yet. As a child I wanted to play in the Premier League.
“Plus my whole family lives in London and going for it would be the icing on the cake. I only see them in holiday periods. It would be a unique opportunity to be near them.”
Pele is a Guinea Bissau international.
Another on the move
Besiktas coach Senol Gunes has confirmed that Wolves target Anderson Talisca is on the move this summer - and all but confirmed that the Brazilian is bound for England.
Talisca has scored 18 goals for the Turkish outfit this season, including one strike on the club’s final day 5-1 rout over Sivasspor.
The 24-year-old attacker, who has previously played for Benfica, has been with Besiktas for two seasons and in that time scored 34 times in league and Champions League.
His boss Gunes, though, has now conceded that Talisca is set for a move to England, amid plentiful speculation linking him with moves to Liverpool and Wolves.
Gunes interestingly revealed that the livewire forward had a deal sewn up in the winter - though does the suggestion that he’d ‘rival’ former Besiktas teammate Cenk Tosun, now at Everton, point to Merseyside over Molineux?
“Talisca was already gone at the winter break,” Gunes said.
“I’m sorry that he won’t be with us any longer. I wish he could stay for his sake and ours. He already had a deal in place.
“He might be rivals with Cenk Tosun.”
