The inside story of Wolves' transfer window as Fosun weaken Bruno Lage's hand

The winter transfer window has shut and Wolverhampton Wanderers have failed to strengthen their squad.

It’s becoming a familiar story at Wolves, where the club’s power-brokers have strengthened Grasshoppers’ squad to a greater extent than their own in January.

Three players have been signed, all with the future in mind.

Hayao Kawabe, a 26-year-old Japan international, joined from Grasshoppers for £500,000 before returning to Switzerland on loan.

Portuguese winger Chiquinho, who joined from Estoril for £3million, is the most exciting signing Wolves made. He is ‘for the present and the future’, according to Bruno Lage, but the chances of Chiquinho becoming a regular between now and May are slim.

“He must try to adapt to a new culture, a new style, and that’s it,” said Lage. “He’s a young talent. The club has followed him for a long time and we decided now was a good time to bring him to us, and he has four months to adapt, to train with his teammates, to know the culture, to know the city, and to understand the way we play.”

The above quote suggests Chiquinho is still some way off challenging Daniel Podence, Francisco Trincao, Hwang Hee-chan and even Pedro Neto - who is edging closer to a return - for a place in the starting line-up.

South Korean starlet Jeung Sang-bin has also joined Wolves in a £1m deal. The 19-year-old has headed straight to Grasshoppers on an 18-month loan deal. Only time will tell whether he lives up to his nickname, the "Korean Mbappe".

Lage asked for three players - a defender, a winger and a "different striker" to first choice Raul Jimenez - and although the club have hit that number, their head coach’s wishes have not been met.

Just days after Lage revealed those desires, right at the start of