Wolves may not have shown a lot of ambition in this transfer window, but there was a time when they were the league’s biggest spenders.
Coming off a 20th league title win, Liverpool are not resting on their laurels by any means.
They broke the British transfer record twice in the same summer—first with the signing of Florian Wirtz at the start of the window, and then again on deadline day with the arrival of Alexander Isak.
But 46 years ago to the day, Wolves were the ones breaking the British transfer record for an exciting attacking talent.
On this day in 1979 Wolves signed Andy Gray for £1.5m
In what would be considered a ‘minimal’ fee in today’s market, in the 1970s was a never-before-seen sum for a football player.
Andy Gray was signed from Aston Villa in a record-breaking deal, and it would be remembered as a success, thanks to some Wembley heroics.
Gray scored the winner for Wolves in the League Cup final, cementing him as a club hero and justifying the hefty price tag.
He would stay at Molineux for four years, scoring 38 goals, before moving on to Everton.
Wolves don’t threaten to break any more transfer records
Finances in football have gotten quite a bit more complex as the game has boomed in the decades since Gray’s move. Wolves can’t compete for the types of players who set records for the fees they attract.
Fosun’s sustainable approach often means signing unknown players for low fees and hoping they succeed in England.
That’s emphasised by the fact that not one of Wolves’ signings has a minute of Premier League experience prior to this season.
We won’t ever see Wolves break a transfer record like that again, but on this day in 1979, we did.