The Jorgen Strand Larsen transfer saga appears to finally be reaching a conclusion for Wolverhampton Wanderers, as he is poised to move on before Monday's deadline.
An offer of up to £48m from Crystal Palace has been accepted by the Old Gold, ending an 18-month stay at the Molineux for the Norway international.
Strand Larsen
The former Celta Vigo forward has only scored one goal in 22 appearances in the Premier League this season, but registered 14 top-flight strikes in his debut year with the club.
Strand Larsen is the second biggest forward departure of the season after Wolves sold Matheus Cunha to Manchester United last summer. The Brazil international delivered 17 goals and six assists in all competitions last term, and the Norwegian striker clearly struggled without him.
Wolves agree deal to sign new striker
Replacing Strand Larsen was never going to be an easy task for the club in the current window, because they are rooted to the bottom of the Premier League and look nailed on for relegation.
Strand Larsen
This means that Rob Edwards and the recruitment team have had to look ahead to next season with their targets, as they know that anyone joining on a permanent deal will likely have to be content with playing in the Championship.
Despite the difficult circumstances that they face in the transfer market heading into the deadline on Monday, the Old Gold are reportedly closing in on a deal for a new striker.
The Athletic's David Ornstein reported that Wolverhampton Wanderers were expected to reach an agreement with Southampton to sign centre-forward Adam Armstrong.
The reporter claimed that the club have made an offer of an initial fee of £7m with a further £2m in add-ons, which are achievable, in an attempt to land the versatile English attacker.
adam-armstrong-southampton
The Shropshire Star have now reported that the two clubs have agreed a deal, at the aforementioned figures, and a medical has now been booked for the striker.
Armstrong is now set to replace Strand Larsen at the top end of the pitch for Edwards, but it is Cunha who he could end up reminding supporters of.
Why Armstrong has shades of Cunha
Armstrong is certainly not a like-for-like replacement for Strand Larsen. Standing at 5 foot 8, the English striker does not provide the same physical presence that the Norway international did, and is not going to be a target man for the team.
However, the Southampton star brings other qualities to the table as a dynamic and versatile forward player who can cause problems out wide or through the middle, as Cunha did.
Wolverhampton Wanderers' Matheus Cunha celebrates after Rodrigo Gomes scores
The Brazilian ace, who often played as one of two number tens or as a striker, scored 27 goals and created 23 'big chances' in his last two Premier League seasons with Wolves, which shows that he provided a consistent threat as both a scorer and a creator of goals.
Armstrong only scored two goals in 20 appearances for Southampton in the Premier League last term, as they were relegated from the division, but his form in his last two Championship seasons with the Saints shows that he can be a Cunha-esque figure for Edwards.
Armstrong (Championship) 23/24 25/26
Appearances 46 29
xG 22.19 14.97
Goals 21 11
Big chances created 11 4
Assists 13 4
Stats via Sofascore
As you can see in the table above, the 11-goal star is a prolific Championship marksman who also has the technical and creative quality to create high-quality chances for his teammates on a regular basis.
Like Cunha, Armstrong carries a dual threat as a scorer and a creator as a central attacking player, without being a traditional number nine who is going to hold the ball up and compete well in duels against physical defenders.
Supporters may not see it straight away, because his aforementioned form in the Premier League last term was poor, but his Championship record suggests that this is a shrewd signing with the 2026/27 campaign in mind.
Armstrong has the proven quality to be Edwards' own Championship version of Cunha next term, when they will hopefully be pushing to secure an instant promotion back to the Premier League.
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