CM Story - The Story of Josh McEwen

Wolverhampton Wanderers have experienced a major shake-up in their midfield this transfer window with the departure of Andre to Liverpool in a £40,000,000 deal. Andre, who was a key figure for Wolves last season has made the switch to the Champions. His move represents a significant loss for the team, both on and off the pitch. 

In response, Wolves have acted swiftly to bolster their midfield options by securing two new signings. Florentino arrives from Benfica for £22,000,000, bringing with him valuable experience from last season’s loan at Burnley. Additionally, England international James Ward-Prowse joins from West Ham in a £6,000,000 deal on a three-year contract. The duo are expected to play vital roles in filling the void left by Andre and will be available for selection in the upcoming season opener against Manchester United. These acquisitions signal Wolves’ intent to rebuild and remain competitive in the Premier League despite the challenges posed by high-profile departures. 

Florentino: "I'm really pleased to be joining Wolves. This club has a rich tradition of Portuguese players, and I’m proud to be the next one to pull on the shirt. Watching last season, I could see what the manager is building here—the team plays exciting football and works incredibly hard to win the ball back quickly, which are qualities that fit my game well. I’m looking forward to meeting my new teammates and getting started." 

James Ward Prowse “Last season was a really tough one for me personally, I didn’t play much for West Ham and obviously being relegated really hurt but I’m thankful for being given this opportunity to play in the Premier League again this season. I think everyone saw that Wolves played some really good football at times last season and I can’t wait to get working under the manager and helping the team build on from a really good season. I know there’s a few young lads in the squad so hopefully I’ll be able to contribute both on and off the pitch and help the club finish as high as possible.” 

Josh McEwen added this on Andres move and the new signings “We are obviously gutted to lose Andre so close to the season starting but he had a massive opportunity presented to him and he has chosen to take that so we wish him well and thank him for his professionalism whilst the talks were going on and also for his contributions last season where he was a key player for us. We had been looking at different options and decided Florentino would be ideal for our team, I think he would improve most teams and we can't wait to see him line up for Wolves this season. James is a brilliant player you have to be to play for England and he will add valuable experience to the team I can’t wait to integrate them into the squad and see what they can contribute to the team this season.” 

As we prepare for a new season we reach the final team in our season preview and that is Wolverhampton Wanderers. Finishing twelve last season despite their poor early form you have to say that it was in the end a good season, this pre season has been challenging for them they lost Ardon Jashari as he returned to his parent club AC Milan. The blow of losing Ardon became worse when their other key midfielder Andre signed for Liverpool earlier this week. Wolves top target this summer appeared to be Lucas Paqueta but they failed to get him in and instead had to settle for his team mate James Ward-Prowse, they did also add Florentino who despite Burnley’s relegation did impress last season and he seems the perfect replacement for Andre although they are still left with the hole of Ardon Jashari with many not thinking that Tommy Doyle (returning from loan), Hayden Hackney or James Ward-Prowse are quite on his level. Heres what Jamie Carragher, Gary Neville, Micah Richards and Roy Keane expect from Wolves this season  

Jamie Carragher “I worry about Wolves this season, I think that when you look at the team they had the last game of the season compared to this team I think they might have gone backwards over the summer. Florentino is a great signing don’t get me wrong but none of the other signings make me sit up and say yeah he has really improved Wolves. My concern is they were the second lowest scorers in the league last season and I don’t think this summer they’ve addressed that issue.” 

Gary Neville “I agree with Jamie which doesn’t happen very often, although what I would say is Hayden (Hackney) had a great season in the Championship last season and we have seen some players step up in recent seasons and if he does play like an Adam Wharton did when he came up then he could be a strewed bit of business however I’m not convinced he is of that calibre. The keeper they’ve brought in I’ve not seen alot of but it was an area they had to bring in some competition into but we have seen keepers come and struggle with the physicality in this league and if he does that Wolves will be in real trouble.” 

Roy Keane “I get what the other guys are saying Wolves have a tough start and you hear their fans are concerned that they haven’t seemingly brought creative players in but I don’t think they’ve had as bad a window as is being made out. The keeper I’ve not seen loads of, but he probably suits the managers style of playing a little more than the keeper's last season. The key players they lost were in midfield and your expecting him to sign a striker to replace them give me a break.” 

Gary Neville “But Roy as a Wolves fan you can’t score goals would you be happy not signing a creative player?” 

Roy Keane “I’d say the manager took us from 20th on two points to 12th so maybe he knows what he's doing. Theres three weeks left of the window if he isn’t happy with what he sees I’m sure he’ll go and do some business with the money from the Andre deal but he’s said he’s happy and he’s the manager who I thought was superb last year.”