PRESIDENT CONFIRMS HE HAS ‘REFUSED’ £21M WOLVES BID FOR TEENAGE WONDERKID

Strasbourg president Marc Keller admits that he has ‘refused’ a £21 million bid from Premeir League outfit Wolverhampton Wanderers for midfielder Habib Diarra. 

While Keller was unwilling to give much away when asked about Wolves’ pursuit of Jean-Ricner Bellegarde, the president was far more forthcoming about the future of Strasbourg’s other coveted midfield talent.

Wolves have reportedly submitted big bids for both Bellegarde and Habib Diarra, offering £21 million for the latter. But the message from Strasbourg is clear. If Wolves are planning to raise their bid, it will be their own time they are wasting.

“I can confirm that we have received an official offer from Wolverhampton Wanderers for Habib Diarra. I politely refused it. Habib will not leave,” Keller tells Dernieres Nouvelles d’Alsace.

“I have said it from the start; our strategy is to build a competitive squad and plan for the future. Habib is a boy trained in the Racing Mutest Academy. He knows that he is one of the players we count on.”

Wolves will not be signing Habib Diarra

The Daily Mail reported at the start of the summer – when Julen Lopetegui was still at the Molineux helm – that 19-year-old Diarra was ‘keen’ on a move to Wolves. It is testament to his vast potential, meanwhile, that no fewer than nine clubs sent scouts to watch the teenager during Strasbourg’s 2-0 win over Nice at the back end of last season.

Some pretty big clubs too; Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester United and West Ham among them. There is also interest from Aston Villa and Manchester City.

Wolves, meanwhile, may be hitting a brick wall in their pursuit of Diarra but Gary O’Neil’s side are closing in on two of their other late-window targets. Santiago Bueno, the Uruguay international centre-half, is joining from Girona. Ditto Libertad’s Paraguayan starlet Enso Gonzalez.

Tommy Doyle, meanwhile, will arrive from Manchester City as part of the deal which sees Matheus Nunes leave for the Etihad Stadium.

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