Patrik Mercado could well be Rob Edwards’ first signing of his Wolves tenure, with rumours that the Wanderers are chasing the Independiente del Valle star.
The Ecuadorian midfielder has been linked with Wolves for quite some time, with the Old Gold presenting their project to him in October.
Over recent weeks, the move has seemingly continued to progress, and most recently, Mercado to Wolves was labelled as ‘practically finalised’.
However, nothing from official sources has ever come out about whether a move was possible, but now there has been an update from the Ecuadorian club’s sporting director.
Which position do Wolves need to prioritise in January?
Patrik Mercado will be allowed to leave in January
The door for Patrik Mercado to make a move to Wolves certainly looks open after what Independiente del Valle’s sporting director, Luis Fernando, has now said.
Speaking via Ecuavisa, Fernando stated that Patrik Mercado ‘could leave as early as January’ and that work on finding a replacement for him is already underway.
If the reports are true about Wolves being the lead runners for Mercado, it is excellent news for the Wanderers, as they need the calibre of player that Patrik Mercado is.
Across 45 games in the current South American season, Mercado has seven goals and 11 assists, the sort of output Wolves are desperately lacking at present.
Rob Edwards’ side are in need of more quality, but to sign the 22-year-old, they must comply with the homegrown quota.
And currently, that is a difficult scenario to manoeuvre.
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Wolves will need to sell someone to bring Patrik Mercado in
Wolves have no space in their squad for a foreign player at the moment.
Unfortunately for the club, Mercado would not qualify for the under-21s list, which could have been a good workaround for the homegrown rules.
To count under that list, the player must have been born on or after 1 January 2004, with Mercado being born in 2003, disqualifying him.
With this being the case, in order to register him, the Old Gold would need to sell one of their current registered players.
At the moment, Joao Gomes has been linked with a move away, but Fosun insist that the Brazilian will not be sold in January.
Additionally, Jhon Arias is set to stay at Wolves despite rumours stating he is available in the upcoming window.
If the Ecuadorian does become one of Edwards’ first new arrivals, it will be interesting to see who leaves to facilitate it.