Shi could land the next Neves at Wolves with late swoop for "intelligent" £64k-p/w gem - opinion

Wolves now have only a few days left to bring any new players into their squad before the January transfer window closes.

One potential deal that the Old Gold could look to finalise before the end of the month is for Barcelona midfielder Riqui Puig, a player with whom they have been linked in recent weeks.

With Adama Traore reportedly set to join the Spanish giants on loan until the end of the season with a view to a potential permanent deal waiting for him in the summer, these negotiations could give Wolves the opportunity to ask about the possibility of signing Puig, either before the upcoming transfer deadline or when the summer transfer window opens.

Having worked his way through Barcelona’s famous youth ranks, the 22-year-old – who is currently picking up £64k-per-week according to Salary Sport – has gone on to make 51 senior appearances for the La Liga club across all competitions, scoring one goal and providing three assists along the way.

Despite his experience, the midfielder hasn’t been a particularly important figure for Xavi this season with just two starts amid a total of 12 appearances across all competitions. That would suggest that a move from Barcelona to somewhere that he would obtain regular playing time would be beneficial for his career and development.

With that in mind, and given his young age, it could be worth Wolves trying to sign Puig – who has been labelled an “intelligent” player by his manager Xavi – on a long-term permanent deal to give him sufficient time to get accustomed to the Premier League and potentially become a regular figure in their team.

Taking all this into account, Jeff Shi now has the chance to sign Wolves’ next version of Ruben Neves as a young midfielder from a top European