Wolverhampton Wanderers have achieved what they set out to do after appointing Vitor Pereira as manager in December 2024 – avoid relegation from the Premier League.
The Old Gold are on an excellent run of form that has seen them win their previous four league matches, taking them further away from the drop zone in the process.
Pereira will now be thinking ahead to the summer transfer window and just exactly how he can bolster his team for the 2025/26 season. There is no doubt that he has a squad capable of pushing towards the top half of the league table next season, although that much might depend on whether he can keep several key players.
Will Matheus Cunha depart in the summer? If so, the manager might have to spend big in order to find a suitable replacement.
In the January transfer window, Periera brought in players such as Emmanuel Agbadou, Marshall Munetsi and Nasser Djiga. Two of these signings were defenders, and it looks as though the Molineux side are targeting another centre-back when the window finally opens in a couple of months.
Wolves want to sign Ligue 1 defender
According to French news outlet Foot Mercato, AJ Auxerre defender Clement Akpa is beginning to attract plenty of attention after enjoying an excellent campaign for the Ligue 1 side.
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Wolves are just one team who are keen on the Ivory Coast international, with interest also coming from the likes of Everton, Eintracht Frankfurt, Hoffenheim, and VfB Stuttgart monitoring his performances of late.
An asking price hasn’t been stated yet, but given their situation, Auxerre won’t be able to resist any team making a decent offer for the player.
The Old Gold have enjoyed plenty of success shopping in the French top flight since they were promoted back to the Premier League in 2018.
Jean-Ricner Bellegarde and Boubacar Traore moved from France on permanent deals in the summer of 2023, while Mario Lemina and Pablo Sarabia linked up with the club in January 2023.
Arguably, the best signing from France, however, was that of Rayan Ait-Nouri, especially given the impact the defender has had in the Midlands.
Rayan Ait-Nouri’s Wolves statistics
Wolves signed Ait-Nouri from Angers on a permanent deal ahead of the 2021/22 campaign following a successful loan spell at Molineux.
“He proved last season that he’s a very talented player, with lots of potential – I thought he did well and kicked on towards the end of the season,” Wolves technical director Scott Sellars said, and the move has turned out extraordinarily well.
Indeed, the Algerian has since gone on to make over 150 competitive appearances for Wolves, registering 28 goal contributions in the process. Not a bad total for a left-back, that’s for sure.
Ait-Nouri has been highly influential for Wolves in the Premier League this term. His ten goal contributions – four goals and six assists – is his best in a single campaign for the club, showcasing his effectiveness in the final third.
The 23-year-old has also won 55% of his total duels contested in the top flight, along with making 2.5 tackles and recovering 4.2 balls per game. His all-around abilities have ensured he can contribute whether Wolves have possession or not.
Season
Games
Goals
Assists
2023/24
38
3
4
2022/23
27
2
1
2021/22
27
1
4
2020/21
24
1
1
Via Transfermarkt
Ait-Nouri has also been attracting interest from elsewhere due to these impressive displays and it won’t be long before the club decide to cash in.
Could Akpa become the next version of the current Old Gold star? A player with immense potential who goes on to become a key player at the club?
Why Wolves want to sign Clement Akpa
Akpa has missed just three Ligue 1 games for Auxerre this season in what is their first season back in the top flight after winning Ligue 2 in 2023/24.
The club have exceeded expectations and currently sit 11th in the table and have even defeated Marseille twice while holding champions PSG to a 0-0 draw during the first half of the season.
Akpa has played a big part in this success throughout the current season. In Ligue 1, the 23-year-old defender has been a rock at the back. Not only has he won 64% of his total duels in the league this term, but the centre-back also lost possession just eight times while making two tackles and 1.3 interceptions per game for Auxerre.
When compared to his positional peers across Europe’s top five leagues, Akpa’s defensive qualities are further highlighted.
Indeed, he ranks in the top 8% for tackles (2.2), in the top 17% for interceptions (1.47) and in the top 18% for blocks (1.6) per 90 across the previous 365 days for his club.
Elsewhere, the youngster also ranks in the top 15% for progressive carries (1.08) per 90 when compared next to his peers, and it proves that while he is superb at the heart of the defence, Akpa is also able to bring the ball out of his own half with ease in order to start attacks.
French journalist Sebastien Denis hailed the player as a “defensive revelation” amid his superb season for Auxerre, and he could be a solid signing for Wolves this summer.
The likelihood is, Ait-Nouri may well be sold in order to secure a major profit on the former Angers starlet. If so, Pereira will have funds to spend this summer as he targets a top-half finish in the Premier League.
Akpa could go on to become Ait-Nouri 2.0 should he move from Ligue 1 to the Premier League in the next few months.
He still has to hit his peak, while exposure in one of the best leagues in the world will allow the defender to go from strength to strength.
Much will depend on the fee that Auxerre demand for one of their prized assets, but if Pereira makes a decent offer, he could snap him up sooner rather than later.
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