Sporting director Matt Hobbs has this evening provided Wolves fans with an honest assessment of how things are currently looking for the club in the January transfer window.
Currently, Wanderers are in a good moment. Gary O’Neil has enjoyed a great start, and has the team sat in 11th place which is something very few would have predicted when he came in.
O’Neil replaced Julen Lopetegui just days before the new season, and everything pointed to a very difficult season for Wolves.
But O’Neil has worked wonders so far, especially considering how many big names left Molineux in the summer.
Big names leaving in the summer was a necessity for the club to not fall foul of Profit and Sustainability rules. Wolves are still having to be careful this month and now, Hobbs has penned an open letter to supporters about what is happening right now in terms of transfers…
Matt Hobbs says Wolves are aiming to be self-sustaining and hints at quiet January
Tonight, Wolves have published some comments from Hobbs regarding the current situation for Wolves with regards to transfers.
Fans are hoping to see a few new faces come in this month, with Wolves having used the fewest players this season out of all Premier League clubs.
There isn’t huge depth right now, and many fans would like to see a few additions. We know that O’Neil really wants a new striker, above all else.
But Hobbs’ remarks tonight aren’t particularly encouraging. He is not ruling out new additions, but the suggestion is that expectations need to be tempered a little, with the club still needing to be cautious.
He said (via Wolves official): “We’ve had a really good start to the season, Gary, the staff and players have done an unbelievable job, and if we can support Gary in the market we will, but we’re trying to be a self-sustainable club.
“We dealt with the most pressing profit and sustainability issues during the summer in a positive and proactive way, so while Gary knows we’ll support him if we can, we’re also not going to put ourselves in any danger whatsoever.”
Interstingly, Hobbs also talks about the potential for a new striker to come in. On that, he adds: “We’ve been looking for a while, but the market is restricted, there’s not a lot of business going on and not a lot of players available. You’re not going to take a player from a team’s starting eleven as nobody wants to make themselves weaker.
“Also, if you look at the amount of minutes Sasa and Fabio have played between them, we’re not looking to replace lots of minutes, so there’s not an immediate rush.”
Sensible Wolves approach is understandable
This is a very intriguing update from Hobbs about where Wolves currently are with regards to bringing new players in.
One thing he makes clear several times is that, it is as much about bringing in the right person as it is the right player.
We have seen that approach in the same window last year, with top characters coming in like Mario Lemina and Craig Dawson, both of whom have helped totally transform the team.
Wolves aren’t about to start doing huge deals, because that would reverse all the good work the club did in balancing the books last summer.
O’Neil probably does need one or two new faces, but he has shown he can extract a hell of a lot out of this current crop and thankfully, the club are in a strong position right now – unlike this time last year.