Wolves are being linked with a new centre-back following the recent exit of Max Kilman.
Gary O’Neil saw the 27-year-old leave the club to join West Ham United in a £40 million deal recently.
Kilman was an important player for the manager, who played him in all but one match across all competitions last season.
Wanderers have been linked with a number of potential replacements since his exit, with the likes of David Carmo and Nico Elvedi probably having the most mentions.
But there have also been a few links to Championship players. Apparently, Sheffield United’s Anel Ahmedhodžić is someone of interest, as is QPR star Jake Clarke-Salter.
Now, Wolves could swoop for a player who was relegated from the Premier League last season.
Wolves reportedly one of several clubs interested in Burnley defender Maxime Estève
Replacing Kilman will not be an easy task for Wolves.
Over the past few years, he really established himself at Molineux, and was very durable. He was also a great ball-player.
O’Neil has some good other options in Craig Dawson, Toti Gomes and Santi Bueno. Yerson Mosquera has also been looking really promising, but he is unproven in the English top-flight as of yet.
One man who does have some Premier League experience is Maxime Estève from Burnley.
He joined the Clarets midway through the 2023/24 season on loan from Montpellier, with Burnley turning the move permanent earlier this summer.
But the Lancashire side are now looking to turn a quick profit on the player following their relegation to the Championship – and Wolves are interested.
Fabrizio Romano wrote on X: “Maxime Estève could be one to watch in August as Premier League clubs are exploring move for Burnley CB. Wolves have asked for conditions, race open for Estève.”
An interesting link
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So Wolves might have some interest in Esteve, who made 16 appearances for Burnley after joining them mid-season.
Burnley obviously went down, but Esteve did catch the eye and is someone that Vincent Kompany – now Bayern Munich manager, of course – was delighted to bring in.
He said of him (Burnley Express): “(He’s) aggressive, front foot, wants to win every duel, good left foot, very fast. It’s a good starting point.”
Given this assessment, Esteve might just make for a decent replacement for Kilman, who arguably did lack aggression. He was great at many things, but being aggressive and dominant was certainly not what he was known for. Indeed, Steve Davis did challenge him to improve in this area when he was the caretaker manager after Bruno Lage got sacked.
He seems to be the profile of player that Wolves are focusing on at the moment – young and with the potential to develop into a top star.
So this could definitely be one to watch, especially with it coming from arguably the top journalist in the game Fabrizio Romano.