Wolverhampton Wanderers manager Gary O’Neil may have led his team on a decent run over the previous few months, but he will need to think ahead to the future.
The likes of Craig Dawson, Matt Doherty and Jose Sa are all on the wrong side of 30, while right-back Nelson Semedo only just turned 30 late last year.
This could see the manager delve into the transfer market in the summer in order to sign a few youthful replacements and move on the players while they still have a sell-on value.
One player who might be in the final few months of his spell at Molineux is Semedo.
The latest on Nelson Semedo's future
The former Barcelona defender has just 18 months left on his current contract as per Transfermarkt and this summer could be the ideal time to move him in order to recoup a decent fee.
Manchester United reportedly showed some interest in signing him last summer alongside AS Roma and with Wolves looking to sell players to help comply with FFP regulations, it appeared to be a missed opportunity.
Despite making 26 appearances this term, the 30-year-old has only scored once and grabbed one assist and is failing to showcase his attacking talents on a regular basis.
Will O’Neil turn to the transfer market for a replacement? Or is there perhaps a young talent in the academy who could be an ideal heir to the Portuguese defender?
The academy star bidding to replace Semedo
20-year-old right-back Dexter Lembikisa has already made four appearances for the Old Gold – all coming last season – and the highly rated defender even has ten senior caps for the Jamaican national side, proving to be a wonderful talent.
The youngster was sent on loan to Rotherham for the first half of the campaign, where he made 27 appearances and scored once, gaining senior experience in one of the most difficult leagues on the continent.
O’Neil then sent him on a loan spell to Heart of Midlothian until the end of the season, and he is already shining in Scotland.
Indeed, after only four Premiership matches, Lembikisa is currently ranked fifth in the squad for accurate passes per game (31.3), while ranking fourth for accurate long balls per game (three), seventh for successful dribbles per game (0.8) and for interceptions per game (0.8), certainly displaying his ability across a range of metrics.
He was hailed as a “top player” by his then U18 coach Steve Davis in February 2022 and there is no doubting his limitless potential.
Hearts look like they have secured an excellent young talent to the end of the season and the chance for him to develop in Scotland is one he simply couldn’t pass up.
It is a much more physical style of play north of the border, but it looks as though he is coping well and this may stand him in good stead when he returns to Wolves in the summer.
O’Neil does not need to spend millions on a replacement for Semedo, not when he has the real deal right in front of him in Lembikisa.