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Agreement reached as Wolves beat Tottenham and Manchester City to exciting transfer
Three years ago, Wolves fought off competition from Manchester City to sign a talented young defender by the name of Yerson Mosquera.
And while they say lightning never strikes twice, clearly nobody told Wolverhampton Wanderers about that.
Because, after submitting a second bid worth £4.3 million for the latest hotly-tipped defensive talent to emerge from French football, Bastien Meupiyou is on his way to Molineux.
According to L’Equipe, Wolves have reached an agreement with Nantes for the 18-year-old’s signature. Gary O’Neil’s side initially saw a £3.4 million bid rejected but retuned with an improved offer that appears to have been sufficient to twist the Ligue 1 outfit’s arm.
Wolves will pay five million euros plus bonuses.
Nantes had no real option but to sell either, given that Meupiyou had made it clear he wanted a new challenge while remaining reluctant to extend a contract which expires in the summer of 2025.
Wolves fight off Manchester City to land Bastien Meupiyou
“Having spoken with him and his entourage, he wants to leave,” Canaries coach Antoine Kombouare told Tribune Nantaise. “It is not up to us to decide. We would like him to stay.”
The manager was keen to avoid a repeat of that Randal Kolo Muani situation. The France international left Nantes for free, returning home around 12 months later when Paris Saint-Germain forked over nearly £70 million to Eintracht Frankfurt.
“I told his dad he has to extend his contract. I don’t want him to do a Randal,” Kombouare added.
“If he stays at FC Nantes, he has to extend his contract. Otherwise, he will leave. They said that they had taken note of our speech.”
Meupiyou now appears to have taken the decision to depart.
HITC understands that there was interest from numerous clubs in France. Tottenham Hotspur, Newcastle United and Everton were in the mix too, though Wolves were always confident they would be the first to cross the finish line.
As for Manchester City, Ouest France claims that Pep Guardiola’s Premier League champions had also been keeping a very close eye on Meupiyou.
Like when snapping up young Yerson Mosquera from Colombian outfit Atletico Nacional during the summer of 2021, however, the prospect of more regular first-team football in the Midlands appears to have lured the teenager to Old Gold.
Gary O’Neil impressed with Yerson Mosquera development
O’Neil handed Mosquera his long-awaited Premier League debut on Friday; rewarded for impressive loan spells at FC Cincinnati and Villarrael, not to mention an impressive pre-season.
And despite a few rather strange flashpoints – Mosquera was always a man who treads that fine line between risk and recklessness – the 23-year-old more than held his own alongside Toti Gomes as a Max Kilman-deprived backline restricted Arsenal to only two goals on the Premier League’s opening weekend.
“Pleased with Mosquera,” O’Neil said after that Emirates Stadium reverse, per Molineux News. “I was delighted with him and Toti as a partnership.
