Wolves and Bournemouth have been tipped to start a bidding war for a talented defender.
Wolverhampton Wanderers are reportedly preparing an offer to sign Udinese centre-back Thomas Kristensen, six months after seeing a bid rejected during the winter transfer window.
Vitor Pereira is keen to sign at least one more central defender this summer as he’s not satisfied with the current depth in the position. Backup options across defence are essential and especially when operating with a back three as Pereira prefers to, so it will come as no surprise that a shortlist of targets has been drawn up over recent months.
Football Insider reports Udinese’s Kristensen is among those Wolves are considering signing. The Old Gold saw a £12 million bid rejected for the Denmark Under-21 international in January but are now weighing up making a fresh offer.
Bournemouth challenging Wolves to defender signing
Wolves may have to move quickly if they are to bid for Kristensen as the report from Football Insider suggests fellow Premier League club AFC Bournemouth are also considering an approach. The Cherries recently sold centre-back Dean Huijsen to Real Madrid for around £50 million and are looking for a replacement.
It could be a difficult choice for Kristensen as both Wolves and Bournemouth would likely offer similar game time. If the 23-year-old were to move to Molineux, he would likely be competing with Nasser Djiga and Yerson Mosquera for the right centre-back spot. At the Vitality Stadium, he’d be behind Ilya Zabarnyi and Marcos Senesi unless one were to leave.
It awaits to be seen if Kristensen is ready to perform in the Premier League but he’s impressed in another of Europe’s top five leagues for two seasons now. The defender has racked up 50 appearances in Serie A in the past two years, becoming a regular starter for Udinese in 15th and 12th-placed finishes.
Standing at 6ft 5in, Kristensen won 3.13 aerial duels per 90 minutes in Serie A throughout 2024/25, while he won 67.7 per cent of his tackles. He’s also proven to have great feet for a big man as he averaged 0.51 dribbles completed per 90, ranking him among the top 11 per cent of defenders in the division.
Nelson Semedo situation still undecided
In other Wolves news, captain Nelson Semedo is now officially out of contract but his future is still uncertain. Birmingham World understands Wanderers have offered the right-back a generous four-year deal that he’s still yet to turn down or accept.
As it stands, it seems more likely that Semedo will leave than stay as there’s widespread interest across Europe, including from Turkey, Spain and Portugal. It’s understood that Semedo has filmed a farewell video in preparation for a potential departure, but nothing is final at this moment.
If Semedo is to leave, Wolves will make signing a replacement a priority but it could open up an opportunity for Brazilian prospect Pedro Lima to enjoy a breakthrough season in the English top flight.
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