Bastien Meupiyou spoke to Wolves correspondent Liam Keen.
As quickly as he arrived, Bastien Meupiyou had made his Wolves exit.
Aged 18 at the time, the defender signed for Wolves from French side Nantes in the summer of 2024 in a deal worth around £4.2million, but he never made a first team appearance.
The centre-back had previously spent a year on the sidelines with a serious knee injury and even after getting himself back fit, his Premier League chance never arrived.
Last summer, head coach Vitor Pereira took a number of young players away on Wolves’ pre-season camp to Portugal but left Meupiyou at home and by mid-July the young defender had left the club.
"It was a dream to go to a Premier League club because I know Wolves are a really good team in England,” Meupiyou told the Express & Star.
"I was frustrated not playing but I know it's football. My knee was not really ready to play in the Premier League at that moment.
"When I was there, I just wanted my knee recovered to have the possibility to play.
"I met some great people there like Ryan Ait-Nouri, Mario Lemina, Jean-Ricner Bellegarde and Nelson Semedo. A lot of amazing players and they really helped me because I did some training with them and I really improved.
"I sometimes still speak to Rayan and Bellegarde.”
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Meupiyou’s move away saw him join newly-promoted Portuguese top flight side Alverca - while Wolves hold a buy back clause for a small set fee and a sell-on agreement if the defender is to leave Alverca will see Wolves get the money back that they paid for him and 50 per cent of any profit made on top of that.
It is understood that a return to Wolves is unlikely and when asked about that possibility, Meupiyou gave a diplomatic response.
He said: "I was just focused on Alverca, on my season, to play the whole season and after anything can happen. Now, I'm just focused here.
"Every player wants to play at the biggest level in football, me too.
"Let's continue to improve, to be consistent and focus.”
Many may wonder why a young player that lasted a year at Wolves is even being discussed for a big move, but that is down to the impressive performances he has put in as a regular for Alverca.
The newly-promoted side finished 11th out of 18 teams in Portugal’s top flight and Meupiyou, now aged 20, played a major role.
The defender played 30 of the 34 league matches this season, starting every single one of them and completed 90 minutes in 23 of them - with just one red card against Tondela in February, following two yellow cards, blighting his record.
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His efforts also earned him a nomination for the Primeira Liga Golden Boy award.
"It was a great year,” he added.
"It was a new project for me, my goal was to gain some playing time and in my first full season as a professional, I think I did well.
"The goal was always to play more. I didn't really play in Wolverhampton, so I wanted to play, it was important.
"Tactically I think I really improved because in this league, we need to do really well tactically because if you don't, you can make some mistakes.
"I think at the start of the season, I was not really good at this, but I really improved on that.”
Alverca may be a side that goes under the radar in the world of football, but they have an ambitious project that is on course for success.
After returning to the top flight for the first time in 21 years, the club are earning headlines on and off the pitch.
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Brazil and Real Madrid star Vinicius Junior is part of a consortium of Spanish and Brazilian investors that acquired a majority stake in Alverca in February last year.
Although the attacker is not heavily involved day to day and is focused on his playing career, there is a buzz around Alverca as a team striving for more.
"It's exciting, it's good for the club,” Meupiyou said.
"Vinicius is one of the best players in the world so it's a pleasure to be here.
"It's a new project, they were promoted last year and it was a really good challenge for me to be here and to play here because it's a new team, everybody is new on the team, at the club.
"The first time I spoke with Pedro (Alves, sporting director), he told me I will play here, I will improve and I will do my best.
"The first time he told me that, I didn't reflect a lot and wanted to come here.
"First I want to thank the coach because the first time I came here he showed me a lot of confidence, he helped me a lot.
"He knows I am a young player so he was behind me the whole season and also the defensive coach, he helped me on the tactical plan.
Wolves unveil new signing Bastien Meupiyouplaceholder image
Wolves unveil new signing Bastien Meupiyou | Local Library
"He told me to stay concentrated the whole game, to do the right thing at the right moment, to not complicate my play and to be more efficient.
"It's really important because he showed me some confidence and some trust and I want to give back to him. I did my best.”
Meupiyou’s story started in the French capital of Paris, where he grew up with his family of four siblings, including his non-identical twin.
As a youngster, he was on the books at Paris FC before eventually joining Nantes, where he enjoyed his first senior breakthrough before suffering from his knee injury.
Strong and physical for his age, Meupiyou’s commanding style was also born from his experience in martial arts during his formative years.
"It was always my dream (to play football) but I did two sports in my life,” he said.
“I did judo and football, but my first dream was to be a professional in football.
"I did Judo when I was young, six until I was nine, I was really good!
"I chose football because my big brother played football as well and I wanted to be better than him.
"When I did judo, I wanted every time to win my game, so I think in football it was the same.
"I was really strong when I did judo.”
He added: "It was difficult to be injured, but I think I was really strong because I had my family behind me to support me.
"They supported me for one year and I never gave up.
"To be injured at 18 was really hard for me.”
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Meupiyou has come a long way in a short space of time since his injury and lack of minutes at Wolves, to now becoming a player to watch in the summer transfer window.
Alverca are preparing themselves for interest in the defender, with clubs across Europe already paying attention to his impressive performances of late.
There is hope that Meupiyou could command a club record fee this summer, with Alverca’s current club record sitting at around £7million when they sold Alex Amorim to Genoa in January.
Considering Wolves’ sell-on agreement, a big move could net the club some money in the coming months.
But for the player, his focus is on becoming one of the best in the years to come.
"I've really improved here,” he said.
"If I had to leave the club, I've had a really good time here. I think I am a better person and player from the start of the season.
"I want to be a player that has a big career, plays in the best competitions in the world and why not be one of the best defenders?”
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