Wolves are a club that love to sign promising young players and develop them into household names – and there’s one starlet currently attracting interest that Wanderers surely must keep tabs on.
We have seen several players come to Molineux since Fosun took ownership of the club who arrived cheap and ended up making the club a lot of money.
We saw Ruben Neves, Pedro Neto and Diogo Jota join years ago, with the club making handsome profits on all of them in the last few years.
And more recently, Wolves have brought Rayan Ait-Nouri and Joao Gomes to the club.
Both of these players could well leave in the summer, and Wolves have surely got to start preparing for life after them.
Gomes, in particular, will be tough to replace. But Dario Essugo might just be a worthy successor.
Dario Essugo wanted by Chelsea and Leeds
Dario Essugo (UD Las Palmas) seen in action during the LaLiga EA SPORTS game between teams of Rayo Vallecano and UD Las Palmas at Estadio de Vallec...
Photo by Maciej Rogowski/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images
According to The Sun, Dario Essugo is currently being tracked by Chelsea.
The 19-year-old has been on loan at Las Palmas this season, which is where Wolves striker Fabio Silva currently is.
MORE WOLVES STORIES
Essugo has made 11 appearances for them so far, having made 25 for his parent club Sporting CP.
The Portugal U21 international has really caught the eye since stepping up to senior football. So much so that Chelsea want to sign him. The Blues actually wanted him in the summer as well.
Championship side Leeds United are also keen on Essugo.
But he very much feels like a player Wolves should be looking at, given the club’s policy of signing young, unpolished players with the potential to become top stars.
The fact he’s Portuguese could well pique Wolves’ interest, especially now that Vitor Pereira has replaced Gary O’Neil.
Wolves should move for Dario Essugo – he could be a Joao Gomes successor
Wolves fans know that Joao Gomes is unlikely to stay at Molineux for years to come like Neves, Neto and Jota all day. It’s unfortunately just not realistic.
Gomes is coveted by big clubs including Liverpool and Bayern Munich, and Fosun will surely be cashing in on him before much longer.
But Essugo could genuinely be a great long term successor for the Brazilian. And if Mario Lemina also leaves next summer – his contract expires, but the club have a year option – that’s even more reason for the club to look at signing him.
It’s also not out of the question that Andre could leave next summer. So given the uncertainty over those three players, Essugo has to make it onto Wolves’ radar.
Like Gomes, Essugo – previously branded ‘a very talented kid’ by Ruben Amorim – is very combative and is impressive when it comes to defensive work in midfield.
As per Stat Muse, Essugo is 15th for interceptions made (21) in La Liga so far this season. But most of the players above him have played more than his 11 games.
It also sounds like Essugo has impressive quality on the ball, with The Sky Blue Times saying recently: “Neat and tidy on the ball in possession, and has the strength to handle pressure from behind, turn, and break the press. Spotted and provided several times some excellent through balls into teammates inside the box.