Wolves and Newcastle United exchange blows on scouting mission as £15m transfer race hots up

Wolverhampton Wanderers are reportedly among several clubs to send representatives to keep a close eye on Angers SCO goalkeeper Yahia Fofana ahead of a possible summer transfer.

The Old Gold are still not quite convinced by their current goalkeeper setup despite Jose Sa’s resurgence and Sam Johnstone’s £10 million arrival from Crystal Palace. Dipping back into the target market could be the solution as Vitor Pereira seeks to add quality and depth in his first summer at Molineux.

Fofana hasn’t missed a single minute for Angers in Ligue 1 this season, starting all 28 matches and conceding 46 goals, preserving five clean sheets in the process. That may not sound overly impressive, but Angers are in a relegation fight and the situation would be far worse if it wasn’t for Fofana’s shot-stopping efforts.

No goalkeeper in Europe’s top five leagues can match Fofana’s post-shot expected goals (PSxG) of 8.05, with Fiorentina’s David de Gea coming closest with 7.5 and Atletico Madrid’s Jan Oblak following with 6.76. That effectively means Angers have been letting in far fewer goals than they would expect based on the number of chances faced, all thanks to just how solid Fofana has been.

Football Insider reports Wolves have been impressed by Fofana this season and recently sent representatives to watch the 24-year-old in action in a 1-0 defeat away at Paris Saint-Germain. All the attention was understandably on PSG as they clinched the Ligue 1 title with six games to go, but Fofana had an outstanding game to keep out shots on target from Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Fabian Ruiz, Vitinha, Achraf Hakimi and Nuno Mendes.

Wolves aren’t the only Premier League team interested in signing Fofana, however. Newcastle United and Brentford also sent scouts to that same game, while clubs from Spain, Germany and Italy are considering swooping in for Fofana before it’s too late.

With just 14 months left on his Angers contract, Fofana could be available for a cut price. Football Insider quotes £15 million as sufficient but that could be ramped back up if a bidding war ensues between several interested parties.

Would Fofana be worth the investment?

If Wolves do sign Fofana, it would be a clear admittance that the signing of Johnstone was misjudged. Gary O’Neil wanted the former England international to compete with Sa but that only lasted for a few months and Pereira has since made Sa his clear number one.

Fofana coming in could throw the cat amongst the pigeons as he certainly has the quality to start. Selling Sa might have to be necessary to make it happen, but that could be exactly what Wolves are preparing for in this situation.

Still yet to enter his prime years, Fofana has made 18 appearances for the senior Ivory Coast national team since his debut in September 2023. He competed for France at youth level but was convinced by Ivorian legend Didier Drogba to change his allegiance. Perhaps international teammate Emmanuel Agbadou could put in a strong word for Wolves.