Eleven players from the first-team, U23s, U18s and out on loan could leave Wolverhampton Wanderers at the end of their contracts next summer – Will Norris, Willy Boly, Ryan Bennett, Roderick Miranda, Romain Saiss, Connor Ronan, Cyriaque Mayounga Ngolou, Wai-Tsun Dai, Andreas Söndergaard, Jackson Smith and Pascal Juan Estrada.
Boly is coming to the end of a three-year deal he signed upon his arrival at Wolves in 2018, but the 29-year-old is likely to be retained past 2021.
Talks were mooted in October 2019 before a broken fibula halted any progress, so a conversation may resume this summer.
He’s made 102 appearances in all competitions for the Midlands outfit and remains a regular at centre-back when fit.
Saiss joined Wolves in 2016 and has gone on to make 134 appearances in all competitions. He extended his deal in February 2019 and has been a standout performer this season.
Wolves are unlikely to let an important player leave for nothing next summer, so talks could be tabled soon. He’s now 30 years of age, however, so a two-year deal may be the best he gets offered.
Bennett is likely to be sold before his contract expires in 2021. The 30-year-old was loaned out to Leicester City in January and had a £5m buying option attached to his contract, so Wolves clearly believe he’s surplus to requirements.
Miranda joined Wolves in 2017 but hasn’t made an appearance for the Midlands outfit since April 2018. The 29-year-old has spent the last two seasons out on loan at Olympiacos (July 11, 2018 – June 30, 2019) and Famalicao (September 1, 2019 – present) after falling out of favour under Nuno, so he’s likely to be sold when the summer transfer window opens.
Ronan joined Wolves in 2014 but has only made 13 appearances in all competitions at senior level, the last of which came in October 2017.
Ronan has spent the last two years on loan at Portsmouth (January 3, 2018 – May 31, 2018), Walsall (August 31, 2018 – January 1, 2019), Dunajska Streda (January 31, 2019 – December 31, 2019) and Blackpool (January 17, 2020 – present), so he’s another player expected to leave before next year.
Norris joined Wolves in 2017 and has made only eight appearances in all competitions. The 26-year-old goalkeeper has featured once in the last 23 months while underperforming on loan at Ipswich Town so he’s surplus to requirements at Molineux and likely to be sold this summer.
Söndergaard joined Wolves in 2018 and has made 41 appearances for the U23s. The 19-year-old is third-choice in goal behind Rui Patricio and John Ruddy, a regular for the reserves, and made the bench in Wolves’ Europa League win over Besiktas in December 2019, so he’s likely to be retained past 2021.
Dai joined Wolves last summer and has spent his debut season in the U23s, so it remains to be seen if he’s retained past next summer.
The 20-year-old has Joao Moutinho, Ruben Neves, Saiss and Leander Dendoncker ahead of him in the midfield pecking order, so Nuno Espirito Santo is unlikely to promote him to the first-team.
If he spends 2020/21 on the periphery, an exit next year looks on the cards.
Ngolou joined Wolves last summer and made four appearances for the U23s, but his future may depend on any opportunities he gets at centre-back next season.
Dion Sanderson looks the most likely of the U23s to be promoted to the first-team, however. Wolves have been linked with Gabriel Magalhaes, Marash Kumbulla, Tosin Adarabioyo and Christian Luyindama too, so Ngolou has competition for places next season.
His hopes of a lengthy stay at Molineux appear to be slim.
Smith’s future is unlikely to be resolved for another year. The 18-year-old has made only three appearances for the U18s this season, but he has one last chance to fight for his future.
Smith will have to move into the U23s when he turns 19 in October, so he’ll need to be playing somewhat regularly for the reserves to earn himself a new deal.
Estrada has made 20 appearances for the U18s and turned out once for the U23s, so his position at Wolves looks safe for now.
If the 18-year-old can build on his reserve-team appearance by becoming more of a regular next season, he should be rewarded with a contract extension.
