Julen Lopetegui worryingly admits he has 'no control' over transfers
Wolves boss Julen Lopetegui worryingly admits he has ‘no control’ over player transfers amid ongoing financial issues
- Wolves manager Julen Lopetegui has said he wants ‘more options’ at the club
- He said that he ‘does not know what is going to happen’ in the transfer window
- Financial issues at have restricted the club from buying players this summer
Julen Lopetegui has made a worrying admission about Wolves’ plans in the transfer window, claiming that player incomings and outgoings ‘are out of his control’ while also re-asserting that he ‘needs more players’.
It comes amid financial turmoil at the Midlands club, with Wolves posting losses of approximately £46.1million last year that have forced their owners, Fosun Sports Group, to seek new investment to help the side remain competitive in the Premier League.
The Spanish manager recently claimed that the club needed to resolve its FFP issues in order to remain competitive in the English top-flight, with doubts arising over his tenure at the club due to his disagreements with their recruitment policy.
Ultimately he opted to stay, having spoken extensively with club bosses about their plans for the summer, which was meant to see him work with a re-vamped transfer structure, targeting players of around £8m-£15m in value.
Wolves manager Julen Lopetegui (pictured) has claimed that he has ‘no control’ over player incomings and outgoings at the football club
Wolves are currently on a warm-weather training camp in Portugal and are set to take on Porto on Tuesday night
But the club are currently going through financial issues that have restricted who they can sign in the transfer market this summer
But it seems his reservations on recruitment are coming to the fore again, with the club having already sold key players Ruben Neves, Nathan Collins and Conor Coady since the start of the window. Meanwhile, Raul Jimenez also looks set to join Fulham, after reports said he had completed his medical earlier today.
Speaking on the club’s aims for the transfer window, he worryingly claimed he was not sure what was going to happen during the summer and admitted that all he could do was stay focused on keeping his current playing group motivated.
‘I don’t know,’ he said in an interview with journalist Guillem Balague on YouTube when asked what the club’s transfer plans were, adding: ‘I would like to answer you.
‘My aim, that is very clear, is that I would like to go to the pitches this afternoon with big energy, to translate [to the players] that we are going to our best in each training session. And as for the rest [of the issues], we will see what is going to happen because it is not under our control.
Speaking on potential players who could depart the club, like Daniel Podence who has not traveled with the squad for their warm-weather training camp he said: ‘It is not under my control that they will go out or not. I want to highlight this.’
‘I am not a financial advisor, I am a coach and I know we must be competitive in the Premier League. I have no complaints about the players that are here, but the rest is true.
‘My responsibility starts and ends on the pitch. FFP is not under my control. I have to do my best always and work with the players who are here, with a big commitment.’
Wolves spent approximately £200m last season bringing in Matheus Nunes from Sporting CP, Goncalo Guedes from Valencia and Collins.
But that has put them under pressure with their FFP requirements and cast much speculation over whether they’ll be able to sign players in the current window, with the club now having to sell in order to acquire new talent.
They have also let go of free agents, Joao Moutinho, Diego Costa and Adama Traore, while acquiring out of contract Matt Doherty and Tom King.
‘It’s true that we need players,’ the Spanish manager added. ‘We have been talking about this since the end of last season. In May, we started talking about the new situation that we knew about before, the financial problem.
‘It was a new situation for me, because I came here with the idea and project that we were able to increase our performance and make a noise in the Premier League.’
He set out his reasoning for this too, saying: ‘I think it is good for the players to have inside competition.
‘And this always increases the level of the players and the level of team. But this is not happening any more and it is happening in all the teams around the world.’
Wolves are currently eyeing-up a £2.5m move for West Ham’s Aaron Cresswell and have also been linked with Bristol City talent Alex Scott.
It appears Lopetegui and his team have had to get creative with their signings in a bid to stay competitive in the Premier League.
‘Unfortunately this situation was bad news for me of course. In the summer we had plan A, and then we had to adapt after this new situation.
It seems they are having to offload a few key players in order to free up some cash and stay compliant with financial sustainability rules, with Raul Jimenez likely to depart the club
Wolves have also sold Ruben Neves (pictured) this summer, the club’s most expensive sale yet, while Nathan Collins and Conor Coady have also left the club
Lopetegui (pictured) admitted that he needed more players while also saying that his side must ‘balance the squad to be competitive in the Premier League’
‘We had to start thinking about cost effective players but it’s true that, at the moment, we can’t develop this plan too.
‘We lost a lot of players this summer, so we want to sign a lot more players. We must balance this situation, we must balance the squad to be competitive in the Premier League.’
Wolves are set to take on Porto later this evening in a pre-season friendly before playing Celtic and Luton Town.
They’ll take on Manchester United at Old Trafford in what will be a tough opening fixture to their Premier League campaign.
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