Transferring from Ajax to Lille, Sven Botman celebrated his first season in France with a Ligue 1 trophy, as Christophe Galtier’s side surprised everyone to see off Paris Saint-Germain for the title.
The Dutch centre-back was instrumental to the form required to pull off that achievement, which led to many clubs being interested in his services very quickly, including Wolverhampton Wanderers.
It was no secret that Wolves were after a new centre-back in the last transfer window, linked with numerous players ranging from Kurt Zouma to Duje Caleta-Car, and Botman was on their list.
Eventually staying in the north of France for another season, the player did admit to interest over the summer when asked by NOS about it, who directly mention Wolves.
He said: “I can’t lie about that”.
The player was then pushed further on the matter, as the outlet asked him whether it was his decision or the club’s to turn down offers and get him to stay for another season.
Botman added: “[It came] from the club, but I didn’t think that was a bad idea in the end. I have a starting place and play in the Champions League, so it certainly wasn’t wrong to stay. In football, sometimes things go quickly, but I believe that, in the end, everything will fall into place”.
While it seems unlikely that Bruno Lage and co. will get another shot at Botman in January, they might have more of a chance next summer, as Lille will undoubtedly look to sell a few more players for a profit, and the centre-back, having stayed his extra season, might be one of the few sacrifices.
