Wolves are closing in on their fifth capture of the summer transfer window as deadline day fast approaches.
The story of the summer transfer window at Wolves has been one of acquiring hot prospects so far, with such narrative not set to change anytime soon.
Matt Hobbs and Gary O’Neil are closing in on the signing of Bastien Meupiyou for £4.2m, who looks set to join the Premier League side from FC Nantes.
With the task of replacing Max Kilman and Pedro Neto still there for O’Neil to overcome, not many would have expected to see the 18-year-old become Wolves’ fifth arrival of the summer.
- READ MORE: What Wolves think about signing another centre-back even after Bastien Meupiyou bid is made
Wolves make plan for Bastien Meupiyou clear
As the deal reaches the final stages, Wolves’ plan for Meupiyou has been made clear, despite the centre-back being just 18-years-old.
When reporting the Midlands club’s talks with Nantes over the teenager’s transfer, Express and Star outlined how O’Neil’s envisions the Frenchman’s future to look at Molineux.
It was noted that the manager is ‘expected to’ integrate the youngster into the first team once the deal goes through this summer.
Now that the centre-back looks certain to become a Wolves player before deadline day, it will be interesting to see if O’Neil stands by his initial plan as the Old Gold continue to be linked with other central defenders.
Gary O’Neil should repeat Yerson Mosquera success with Meupiyou
Keeping Meupiyou at Wolves might be necessary this summer due to O’Neil’s lack of options at centre-back.
That being said, it the Old Gold are to bring in a more experienced head to the back line, the manager could be inspired by the recent emergence of Yerson Mosquera when it comes to planning Meupiyou’s future.
The Colombian embarked on two loans over the 2023/24 campaign, spending time at both Cincinnati and Villarreal.
When the 23-year-old returned this summer, he was a ready-made option for O’Neil to integrate into his starting XI.
It was perfect timing for O’Neil and reinforced the success that loan spells can have on players requiring experience, something that could be more beneficial to Meupiyou than remaining at Molineux.
The Wolves target was described as “powerful” by talent scout Jacek Kulig however, the fact remains that he is incredibly raw having only one senior appearance under his belt.
Hobbs and O’Neil could use the Mosquera blueprint to optimise the potential that could be unlocked in Meupiyou, who at such an integral point in his budding career, needs to be playing regular football.