Former Wolves star Vitinha starred in the Champions League final, but there was another player on the field in Munich who could have also played in gold and black.
Vitinha’s struggles at Wolves have since been followed by success in Paris, transforming himself into one of Europe’s best midfielders.
Wolves’ mistake of letting Vitinha go will no doubt haunt Fosun for years to come. Vitinha, however, isn’t the only transfer error made by the Molineux owners.
That is because there is another PSG player who Wolves missed out on signing in 2023 – namely, Joao Neves.
Photo by Alex Pantling - UEFA/UEFA via Getty Images
Photo by Alex Pantling – UEFA/UEFA via Getty Images
Wolves wanted to sign Joao Neves in 2023
Yes, that is right, Wolves did in fact have the chance to sign Neves back in 2023.
According to Portuguese outlet A Bola (print edition 06/06/2023), Wolves were reportedly pushing to sign the then Benfica man alongside European giants Bayern Munich.
Neves, who was 18 years old at the time, was coming off the back of a breakout campaign in Portugal, and Wolves believed he could be the heir to the likes of Ruben Neves and Joao Moutinho.
A £50.5 million fee was being reported at the time, and it seems like the Molineux outfit were reluctant to outlay that sum on someone who had only 20 first-team appearances under their belt at that point.
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That decision, however, has come back to haunt Wolves, with Neves playing a key role in PSG’s Champions League triumph alongside Vitinha.
Diogo Jota hinted that Wolves should sign Neves
Fosun will be left ruing their decision after watching Neves lift the Champions League, especially after being told to sign the midfielder back in 2024 by former Wolves star Diogo Jota.
In an interview with GOAL in June 2024, Jota was asked to name a young player ‘everyone should watch out for’.
The ex-Molineux man would name Neves as his pick, tipping the youngster for big things in the game.
“Joao Neves. He has the quality and the mindset to go really far.”
@goalglobal Diogo Jota names the best-looking player in the Liverpool squad 😎 @adidas #football #soccer #premierleague #liverpool #portugal #euro2024 ♬ original sound – GOAL
Hindsight is a beautiful thing, but it seems like Wolves should have listened to their gut and Jota when contemplating a move for Neves.