Wolverhampton Wanderers who secured promotion to the Premier League by winning the Championship, are already looking for reinforcements to prepare for life in the English top flight. They have been linked with Pele who plays for Rio Ave in the Portuguese first division and the latest developments suggest that the deal is practically done.
Unlike his famous namesake, Pele is a defensive midfielder and has played a crucial part in helping his club to finish fifth in the League. The League was as usual taken away by ever dominant FC Porto who went on to secure the title.
It is understood that Wolves will have to pay £9m to acquire the services of the midfielder. The move is evident from the fact that he recently gave an interview where he clearly mentioned that there are interests from England and proposals have also been made. When asked whether he is going to leave the club next season he said,”Yes, because I have received approaches and proposals from several clubs.”
He didn’t beat around the bush and said that he would love to play in the English top flight. He further added,”I’m going to analyse the proposals with my family and choose the one that I want the most. I’m going to travel for the week, maybe it’s the most likely outcome, but I do not close doors yet. As a child, I wanted to play in the Premier League. Plus my whole family lives in London and going for it would be the icing on the cake. I only see them in holiday periods. It would be a unique opportunity to be near them.”
Pele has represented Portugal at various youth level tournaments but decided to turn up for Guinea Bissau at the senior level as he will have more chances of first team action with them. The 26-year-old made 31 appearances in the League and managed to find the back of the net seven times.
He is not in the team for his goal scoring exploits but it certainly helps when a midfielder can pop in with some crucial goals time to time. He is a dynamic midfielder and can be useful in both halves of the pitch.
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There are reports that Rio Ave will have to share the transfer money with Benfica as they sold him to Rio Ave last summer and included a clause which allows them to have some of the sale proceeds of Pele. Pele will certainly add much-needed depth to Nuno Santo’s sqaud who are preparing for a big season in the Premier league. The midfielder has all the attributes to shine in the English top flight and could turn out to be another shrewd piece of business by the West Midlands club.
