Wolves must now try to replace Rayan Ait-Nouri, after the star completed a move to Manchester City.
The Algeria international brought his five-year spell at Molineux to an end on Monday, leaving many Wolves fans gutted.
Rayan Ait-Nouri signed for Wolves from Angers on loan initially, before the club then turned his move permanent for around £10 million.
The star has been on an exciting trajectory over the last few years, and in 2024/25 he finished as the defender with the most goal contributions in the Premier League.
It was always a possibility he would depart, given the length of time he had been at Molineux.
But now he has gone, and Wolves face the unenviable task of trying to replace him.
It is thought Manchester City have signed Ait-Nouri for an initial £31 million, with add-ons taking the future fee to approximately £36 million.
Many Wolves fans are angry about the Ait-Nouri fee, and will therefore agree with what Ben Foster has just had to say about the situation.
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Ben Foster claims Wolves should have demanded £50m for Rayan Ait-Nouri as star completes Man City transfer
Photo by Mike Hewitt/Getty Images
Photo by Mike Hewitt/Getty Images
There has been frustration about the fee Wolves agreed with City to sell Ait-Nouri.
Many feel that, even though he only had one year left on his contract (plus the option to extend by a further 12 months), Ait-Nouri was worth a lot more money.
Milos Kerkez is a similar player to Ait-Nouri in terms of potential, and he is set to join Liverpool for around £45 million.
For Ben Foster though, Wolves should have asked for even more money than that.
He said in a new video on his YouTube channel: “Ait-Nouri to Man City, £36 million. I think that’s a bit cheap, I do. I think that’s a bit cheap. I’d be looking at £50 odd million for him, at least.”
Photo by Katharine Lotze/Getty Images
Photo by Katharine Lotze/Getty Images
Wolves have given Ait-Nouri away
Many Wolves fans will agree with Foster’s suggestion that Ait-Nouri’s sale was too cheap.
Perhaps £50 million might have been a stretch, but £45 million like Kerkez would surely not have been beyond Wolves.
Wolves have had to pay £9.5 million to remove the 50% sell-on clause that Angers had on Ait-Nouri, so taking that away from the £36 million, they have essentially sold him for just £26.5 million.
Considering the potential of the player, this really is poor from Wolves.
In a few years’ time, that fee could look really embarrassing on Wolves’ part, because Ait-Nouri stands to shine in that City team with his phenomenal technical ability.
Seemingly, there was not a particularly strong push from Ait-Nouri to make the move happen either. It’s not like he applied a lot of pressure, so that makes the sale even more perplexing.