Out of nowhere on Monday, the English media, kicking off with Sky Sports, reported that Wolverhampton were on the verge of signing Joao Moutinho from AS Monaco for a small fee of £5m.
This came as a bit of a shock, as no one in France was reporting the deal, and they still aren’t really, apart from Le10 Sport, who try to explain how the deal came about.
According to the French website, it all started with Wolves’ interest in Strasbourg’s Jean-Eudes Aholou, which we relayed on Friday, who was also a target for the principality club.
Nuno Espirito Santo’s side failed in their attempt to acquire the Ivory Coast international, who will instead be heading to Monaco.
This forced the Premier League side to focus on Joao Moutinho, who might not have started as much with Aholou’s arrival, hence the relatively minimal fee for the 31-year-old, who only very recently renewed his contract with Monaco.
Le10 Sport believe the Strasbourg captain’s arrival could be finalised today, meaning Moutinho’s exit probably won’t be far behind.
We’ll have to see if this all pans out like they say it will, but if it does, then fair play to the French website.
