Wolves could be handed a boost in the summer as former transfer target Boulaye Dia will be available at a cut price however, is he the right man for Gary O’Neil’s side?
At the end of the summer transfer window in 2023, Wolves were reported to have made a last-ditch effort to sign Salernitana striker, Boulaye Dia.
The Serie A club rejected the Old Gold’s attempt to sign the 27-year-old and were left upset by the Premier League outfit’s late interest in the player that they permanently secured earlier that summer.
Now, it has been reported that the situation of Dia’s availability has changed, with the player unlikely to feature again for Salernitana this season after falling out with the coaching staff.
It’s reported that the striker refused to come on as a substitute during a match last month, leaving his future in Italy in jeopardy, which could alert the eyes of Wolves ahead of the transfer window.
What has been said about Boulaye Dia to Wolves
As reported by Italian outlet Tutto Salernitana, the Serie A club are willing to let Dia leave in the summer due to the rift caused this season between player and coach.
It’s said that the forward ‘will be sold’ at the end of the 2023/24 campaign, with it understood that the club don’t expect to receive a price as high as their €30m (£27m) demand last year.
In fact, the report claims that it could be ‘hard’ to even get back the €13m (£11m) fee that they paid Villarreal for him in the summer, suggesting that Wolves could land a bargain if they attempted to seal a deal in that region.
Wolves must think hard about Boulaye Dia situation
Previously lauded as an “absolute monster” by journalist Jonas Adnan Giæver, there’s no denying that Dia is more than capable of leading a line.
The 27-year-old caught the eye of Wolves after his thrilling season in Serie A throughout 2022/23, where he netted 16 goals and recorded six assists in 33 appearances.
While it doesn’t take much to understand that the Senegal international fits the demographic of player that Gary O’Neil may want to add to his squad in the summer based solely on his ability to score goals, things haven’t been as potent for Dia this term.
Not only has the forward fallen out of favour for behavioural reasons but has also not been a reliable source in the final third for Salernitana.
In 17 Serie A appearances, the Wolves target has netted just four goals, giving O’Neil something to consider if the Old Gold were to consider diving back into the market for the player.
Wolves do need a striker, but not one that isn’t guaranteed to bring a presence to the front line.
To put into perspective the Midlands club’s options, Dia has a lesser scoring frequency than loanee Fabio Silva, averaging a goal every 286 minutes in Serie A to Silva’s 212 minutes in the Scottish Premiership, via Sofascore.
Considering that the Portuguese Wolves loanee was shipped away due to not being seen in O’Neil’s immediate plans, it would make little sense for the club to then introduce a player who is performing at a similar level.
Only time will tell if the Old Gold opt to pursue the Senegalese striker in the summer, with his future at Salernitana hanging in the balance.