Wolves land rapid Patricio replacement as keeper arrives in £6.8m deal
Wolves have wasted little time in replacing goalkeeper Rui Patricio, with Jose Sa arriving from Olympiacos on a lengthy deal.
Patricio, 33, had spent three season at Molineux but left to join Roma on Tuesday. The lure of working with Jose Mourinho seemed too tempting to turn down, with the Italians paying £9.8m.
“In Jose Mourinho we are talking about one of the greatest coaches in the world and I am excited to start working with him and doing everything I can to help the team,” he told the Serie A side’s website.
Bruno Lage has continued the trend of the West Midlands club recruiting Portuguese players. It was thought they were hoping to sign Atalanta goalkeeper Pierluigi Gollin.
But Sa arrives from Greece on a five-year deal, according to the club’s website, with Wolves paying £6.8m.
Having moved into the first-team picture at Porto in 2017-2018, he was then jettisoned by Dragoes manager Sergio Conceicao. His first season with Olympiacos was on loan before he penned a four-year contract in the summer of 2018.
The Braga-born shot-stopper totalled 83 league appearances over the next three years, winning back-to-back Super League Greece titles. He played 124 times in all competitions for the Karaiskakis Stadium outfit and kept 62 clean sheets.
The former Portugal Under-23 ace will now get the chance to ply his trade in the Premier League. Wolves are looking to bounce back after a modest campaign by their recent high standards.
Nuno Espirito Santo has moved on and there is a sense that it is a new era for the Black Country club.
Friendly faces waiting for Sa
After starting his career at Maritimo, Sa moved to Porto in January 2016. He played 27 times for the club and was in the same squad as current Wolves stars Ruben Neves and Willy Boly.
They will no doubt welcome him while he has previously worked with Lage in the Benfica youth setup. His arrival takes the total number of Portuguese players available to Lage to eight.
And while another summer target may not be Portuguese, Wolves are said to be looking at Benfica striker Haris Seferovic. The 29-year-old was a star for Switzerland during Euro 2020 and is also wanted by West Ham United and Everton.
It is not thought that any of the trio have yet tabled a bid, with Benfica said to want €25m for the forward.
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