Wolves are keeping a close eye on an up and coming defender who enjoyed an excellent 2023-24 campaign

olverhampton Wanderers are keeping a close eye on an up and coming defender who enjoyed an excellent 2023-24 campaign and is currently at the Olympics, it has been reported.

Wolves yet to replace their captain

Gary O’Neil has lost his captain this summer with Julen Lopetegui pouncing on the 27-year-old defender, shelling out £40m to take the centre-back to Premier League rivals West Ham United.

It comes as a blow to the Old Gold, not solely due to his ability but also his availability. Across the past three seasons, Kilman has missed just nine games, while he played every minute of the 2023-24 campaign and all but one game the season before.

It leaves Wolves looking light in the heart of defence ahead of their Premier League opener against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium. As it stands, Toti Gomes, Craig Dawson, Santiago Bueno and returning defender Yerson Mosquera are the only options that O’Neil can call upon.

As a result, a new defender is expected, and there have been long-term links with FC Porto centre-back David Carmo, who was on loan with Olympiacos last season and seems surplus to requirements at the Estadio de Dragao.

However, they also have other options in case the 25-year-old cannot be prised out of Portugal this summer, and now a new name has entered the fray.

Wolves eye Olympic defender

Now, netport have claimed that they are keeping a close eye on Valencia defender Cristhian Mosquera as they look to bolster their ranks ahead of the new campaign.

The 20-year-old defender made 33 La Liga starts last season, earning a call-up to the Spanish U21 team and being selected as part of the Spanish Olympic side this summer, appearing in their 2-1 loss to Egypt.

He still has plenty of room to improve, but was hailed as “the type of CB who loves to battle with physical attackers and thrives in ground duels due to his physical maturity” by Football Analyst Ben Mattinson on X.

“He’s technically secure and loves to carry the ball out the defence”, Mattinson added, which would certainly come as a major bonus to O’Neil’s side.

The £2.5k per week centre-back would not come cheap though; he is under contract until 2026 as things stand, and is valued at a massive 30m euros (£25m) by transfer site Transfermarkt.

Givemesport claim that “Mosquera is ‘back in the picture’ for Wolves’ higher-ups after impressing in his side’s pre-season campaign”, and that they could make a move for him should they fail in a move for Carmo, though long-term target Nico Elvedi is also under consideration.

Stepping into Kilman’s shoes would be a major ask for a player with less than 100 senior appearances to his name, but were Mosquera to deliver on his promise, Wolves would have a future superstar defender on their hands.