Wolves winger Daniel Podence last night sealed a loan move to his former club Olympiacos.
The 27-year-old had been away from the squad, amid speculation about his future.
Podence played no part for Wolves in their first five games before the international break.
Podence also did not play in pre-season, sitting on the bench just one time against Rennes.
He was briefly brought back into the first-team squad by Gary O’Neil, but was then demoted to the U21s.
Podence has now left Wolves on a temporary basis.
He has signed a contract extension in the process, in order to protect his value.
And now, sporting director Matt Hobbs has spoken about the decision…
Matt Hobbs shares whether Daniel Podence will play for Wolves again
Wolves confirmed the move last night via the club’s official website.
And as with all moves in and out of Molineux, Hobbs has explained the motives. And the door is still open for Podence to return in the future for Wanderers.
He said: “It’s no secret that Daniel was keen to look at new options this summer, but nothing came which suited us or Daniel. But this is an opportunity for him to go back where he was and play European football, and he was great in understanding that for us to allow it, he had to sign a contract.
“There’s still a possibility Daniel comes back and plays for Wolves again, but it was the right time to let him go and play this season. He can either come back after the season or we’ll be negotiating next summer with a player with a longer contract. He was respectful and didn’t push back – he was happy to protect the club. We’ll stay in touch this season, and I want him to do well, to either come back and play for us in good form or maximise his value.”
Interestingly, Hobbs says that interest was high in Podence. Apparently there was some interest from Premier League clubs.
“This (exit) has been on the cards since January, when Julen was here, that he could leave in the summer, but he wasn’t going to leave for anyone. He had offers from the Premier League, but he didn’t want to go, but with this opportunity European football was a big pull. It works for all parties. They get a good player on loan and we protect ourselves with no costs from this year. It was a palatable situation for all parties.”
Podence also reportedly had some interest from Saudi Arabia on deadline day.
Good work by Wolves with Podence contract extension
So Podence will spend the 2023/24 season with his former club Olympiacos, who are in this season’s Europa League.
It is not an ideal situation – but at least Wolves were able to extend the player’s contract.
This means that there will be another chance to sell the player next summer.
It will be interesting to see how he gets on.
And who knows if that penultimate game against Everton last season was the last time Podence wears the Wolves shirt.