Gary O’Neil has offered supporters a fresh update on the Wolves players currently out on loan ahead of next season.
A whirlwind 2023/24 campaign for Wolves is about to come to an end. The Old Gold were agonisingly close to an FA Cup semi-final and at one point, were battling for Europe, yet it’s still been a successful season at Molineux.
Gary O’Neil took over from Julen Lopetegui to keep Wanderers in the Premier League and he’s smashed that expectation out of the park, despite suffering horrendous luck with injuries.
The 40-year-old will now be looking at Fosun to give him the funds to bolster his depleted squad, although he accepts he may need to sell some of his stars to spend millions on players.
This is the situation he’s been dealt with and he’s already compared it to the one that saw Lopetegui walk out of Molineux, which doesn’t fill supporters with hope.
Given it doesn’t sound like Wolves will be splashing the cash this summer, O’Neil was asked whether any of his current players out on loan still have futures at the club.
Gary O’Neil drops update on Wolves loan players
There’s currently a long list of players plying their trade temporarily away from Wolverhampton, but once they return this summer, some will be eager to impress O’Neil while others – namely Daniel Podence – will want the club to sanction a permanent transfer.
When asked about the future of Podence, who just helped Olympiacos knock Aston Villa out of the Europa Conference League semi-finals, he gave a fresh update on all of the players loaned out.
Speaking ahead of the Crystal Palace home clash, he said: “Most of the loan players will come back and we’ll have a discussion around what they want first and foremost.
“Firstly, it’s around the player so; if anybody doesn’t want to be here, it’s very very difficult to force someone into something they don’t want to do.
“So, for the most part, it’ll be come back and have a conversation around how they feel, what they’re looking to do and then off the back of that, my opinion on them and whether I think we want them around the group; culturally, talent-wise and whether it’s best for us to keep them around or move them on.”
Which Wolves loanees have a future at Molineux?
It’s a testing time for O’Neil, as while he can be proud of the job he’s done so far, he may have taken Wolves as far as they can go unless they invest.
From the outset, it doesn’t sound promising when he could be relying on some of his current players out on loan next season, though there are a few individuals who deserve their chance.
Yerson Mosquera, currently starring on loan at Villarreal, has been told he has a future at the club by O’Neil, with the centre-back poised to play his part.
Likewise, exciting winger Chiqinho – who has five goals and three assists at Familicao – could be given a chance by the Wanderers boss.
Of course, Wolves don’t want to rely on those two individuals to be a regular part of their first-team plans, but given their injury troubles this season, having them available this term would have been a massive help.