Wolves 2025/26 Transfer Tracker: Ins, Outs, & Latest Rumours
Including the World Club Cup's top playmaker and Celta Vigo's wonderkid
Transfer windows have been a touchy subject for Wolves fans recently.
Fosun’s decision to build their defensive recruitment around Sam Johnstone and the inexperienced Yerson Mosquera and Bastien Meupiyou last summer was a key factor in the side propping up the table at Christmas.
This year’s window could have been another sore one, following the departures of Matheus Cunha and Rayan Ait-Nouri — responsible for 30% of Wolves’ 24/25 league goal contributions.
But the signing of World Club Cup star Jhon Arias, bringing the total expenditure to £60 million before pre-season, shows Wolves may be serious about rebuilding early and avoiding another slow start.
Here’s a look at who’s in, who’s rumoured, and who’s already out the door so far this summer.
Fer López (signed)
Date of birth: 24 May 2004 (age 21)
Place of birth: Madrid, Spain
Height: 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
Position(s): AM, RW
2024/25 league stats; 7(10) apps, 2 goals
Transfer fee: An initial £19.6 million
"I remember trying to get him to do volleys into a basketball net in a thunderstorm, which I thought would be hard. He got them all in, so I switched it for a netball post with no backboard, and he still did it”
Anyone who read Sky Sports’ recent interview with Fer López’s former coach might have thought Wolves were signing the next David Blaine.
López didn’t create any miracles in his debut season in La Liga, but he did weigh in with a couple of goals across 17 (largely sub) appearances. He also grabbed a brace in a 7-0 Copa del Rey win over Segunda Division B side Salamanca.
So what can Wolves fans expect from López? According to one expert, he may be tougher than he looks — a useful asset coming into the Premier League.
“He is brave. Although he’s young, he doesn’t refuse contact with more experienced defenders,” says Santi Peon, a Celta Vigo radio reporter. “His best position is behind the striker, so he can play as a winger. He always wants to try to see the opposite goalkeeper”.
López already knows Jørgen Strand Larsen from the Norwegian’s time at Celta — the pair even holidayed together this summer — which may help the 21-year-old settle into the team quickly, possibly playing off JSL.
The above highlights alone show him to have a wicked left foot, composure on the ball, and a flair for set-pieces.
Are we getting a young Pablo Sarabia but with more heart? Time will tell.
Jørgen Strand Larsen (Loan made permanent)
Date of birth: 6 February 2000 (age 25)
Place of birth: Halden, Norway
Height: 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in)
Position(s): CF
2024/25 league stats: 30 (5) apps; 14 goals, 4 assists.
Transfer fee: £23.4 million
JSL received a lot of criticism in his debut season, some of it justified following some clumsy performances, but the Norwegian’s stats speak for themselves:
The most goals (14) in a debut Premier League season for Wolves (beating Raul Jimenez’s 13 in 2019 and doing so in a much worse team)
One of the top 10 Premier League goalscorers for the season, equalling Bruno Fernandes’ and Bukayo Saka’s combined tally.
Seven goals (and two assists) in his last nine games
A 24.4% shot conversion ratio, the fourth best in the league.
Mo who?
There are valid reasons for JSL’s dips in form, too. His blank spell at the start of the year came after a tactical change that included Wolves playing the ball to his feet — something he has consistently struggled with.
Get crosses in the box for him, though, or play through balls for him to run onto and he becomes a different player. 12 of his 14 Premier League goals have come via one of these channels.
If he can sort his hold-up play out (a 6ft 4in, 13-stone unit shouldn’t be getting pushed off the ball that easily), then Larsen’s already-modest transfer fee will quickly start to look like peanuts.
The exciting part? He normally does much better in his second season.
JSL’s second-season wonders
Jhon Arias (Close to signing at the time of writing)
Date of birth: 21 September 1997 (age 27)
Place of birth: Quibdó, Colombia
Height: 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)
Position(s): RW, LW, AM
2024/25 league stats: 34 apps; 4 goals, 13 assists.
Transfer fee: £18.2 million
Check out Jhon Arias’s stats, and you might sum up his game in two words: playmaking and stamina.
The Colombian topped the “Chances Created” chart for Fluminense in the World Club Cup this summer, helping his side reach a semi-final showdown with eventual winners Chelsea.
His goal and assist against Ulsan SD (including a top-bins free kick) was a personal highlight, showing off his eye for goal.
Arias topping the charts at the WCC along with Mr. Neves and some bloke called Cole Palmer.
Arias helped Fluminense win their first-ever Copa Libertadores, too, including a brace in a 5-1 thrashing of River Plate.
He also very rarely gets subbed once he starts. He’s played every league and WCC minute so far this season, and only dropped seven minutes of the 26 league games he started last campaign.
“Without Arias, Fluminense simply don’t tick going forward,” says Nathan Joyes, an expert on South American football. “He’s been their main creative outlet, who takes responsibility for not only wanting to drop deep and pick up the ball, but also having the ability to glide past players into areas where he can really impact the match.”
He’s made waves on the international stage, too, with The Athletic tipping him as ‘Colombia’s dangerman’ last summer. “Arias is a pacy, reliable footballer,” says Felipe Cardenas, senior writer. “ He’s an intelligent player who can play on both wings and provide a valuable outlet in transition”.
“Drop deep and pick up the ball”; “a valuable outlet in translation” — it’s all starting to sound very Matheus-Cunha-esque.
The Colombian does turn 28 in September, 18 months Cunha’s senior and hardly fitting a ‘young-and-hungry’ approach, but then Wolves may be about to get him at his peak.
Arias’s record over the past two years shows an average goal or assist every two games, something that may help fill the Cunha-shaped hole in Wolves’s firepower.
Samuel Lino (Repeated rumour)
Date of birth 23 December 1999 (age 25)
Place of birth: Santo André, Brazil
Height 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)[2]
Position(s) LW, LWB
2024/2025 stats: 21 (10) apps; 3 goals, 4 assists.
“One of Diego Simeone’s mainstays” was how Spanish paper El Pais described Samuel Lino less than a year ago, after the young Brazilian had successfully stepped into the role left by Yannick Carrasco.
So, why are Atlético Madrid reportedly offering the 25-year-old to Premier League clubs, including Wolves?
Well, Simeone also criticised Lino’s finishing in the same El Pais article. The winger has scored only twice since Christmas despite playing most games for Los Rojiblancos.
Atlético have also splashed out on two wingers this summer, the exciting Álex Baena for £36m and Simeone’s compatriot Tiago Almada, so Lino might be surplus to requirements.
What would he bring to Wolves?
Lino’s defensive ability has been overlooked amidst talk of his attacking output. He often plays a deeper role on the left that straddles wing-back territory. His impressive defensive stats (in the top 18% for his position) mark him out as suited to that role.
“Lino is very good at making those split-second decisions to win the ball back,” say Breaking the Lines, an online data analyst. “He has recorded an over 75% success rate in tackles, showing his ability to fight the ball back.”
He’s also great at bringing the ball forward into dangerous positions and creating chances. “Samuel Lino is a defender’s nightmare as he tends to outrun them with his quick feet”, says the same report.
Simeone has nagged Lino to get more goal contributions and a 15-minute cameo against Seville last season showed a glimpse of what the player is capable of. Coming on at 2-3 down, Lino smashed in an impressive 25-yard equaliser, then cleverly found Griezmann for the winner.
This mix of defensive and attacking potential is the perfect recipe for a solid Premier League wing-back — something Wolves need with Rayan Ait Nouri leaving for Manchester City.
Outs
Matheus Cunha to Manchester United (£62.5 million)
Rayan Ait Nouri to Manchester City (£31m rising to £36.3m with add-ons)
Pablo Sarabia (released). Now at Al-Arabi in Saudi Arabia
Craig Dawson (released). Without a club
Chiquinho (released). Now at Alverca in Portugal
Chem Campbell (released). Now at Stevenage.