Wolves £13.5m flop offered transfer lifeline after failed Sheffield United move

According to L'Equipe, one of the most respected newspapers in France, Hoever is set to be loaned out to AJ Auxerre. Auxerre are back in the French top-flight and have been scouring the loan market for players and have identified Hoever as one of their targets. They are said to be 'on the verge' of signing the Dutch defender who currently doesn't feature in Gary O'Neil's immediate plans.

The 22-year-old looked set for a move to Sheffield United at the beginning of August. According to The Star, an injury issue put the deal in jeopardy, and they instead made the move for Chelsea's Alfie Gilchrist. Manager Chris Wilder in an interview stressed the need to sign a new right-back but refused to be comment on Hoever individually.

Hoever is at a crossroads in his Wolves career as he has been unable to break in to the first-team picture. He's made 25 appearances since joining the club but the majority of those came in the 2020/21 season, and since then he's been loaned out to PSV, and Stoke City.

The former Liverpool starlet wasn't a part of the 20-man match-day squad in Wolves' opening day defeat to Arsenal, but he was a part of their pre-season squads in Marbella and the USA. He is still under contract at Molineux until 2026 after joining from the Reds in 2020 for a reported £13.5 million.

If Hoever does complete a move to Auxerre then he will be joining a club which opened their campaign with a win. They defeated OGC Nice, who are owned by Ineos, who also run Manchester United, 2-1 at the Stade de l'Abbe Deschamps.

Auxerre have recruited several players from the United Kingdom this summer with Gabriel Osho arriving after his contract with Luton Town expired, whilst striker Theo Blair was signed from Scottish Premiership Motherwell.