Wolves have been heavily linked with Vitoria de Guimaraes midfielder Andre Almeida in recent days, and he could be the ideal heir to Joao Moutinho in Bruno Lage's side.

Recent reports have suggested that the Old Gold are very keen on signing the €50m (£42.2m) gem, who looks set to leave the Primeira Liga club this summer ahead of his contract expiring next year.

While Wolves were able to convince Moutinho to stay put for another year, the former Porto magician will turn 36 in September and cannot be relied upon to play at the top level for much longer, so the Old Gold should be on the lookout for a younger replacement.

Almeida made 31 appearances in the Portuguese top flight last season, and while he failed to contribute a single goal or assist, he clearly possesses ability on the ball as he averaged an impressive 86.3% passing accuracy rate.

Moutinho is regarded as something of a pass master, and in the Premier League last season he averaged an 86.7% passing accuracy rate, which was only slightly better than Almeida.

The 22-year-old also averaged more shots and dribbles per game than Moutinho, which suggests that he is more capable of getting forward and influencing the attack, whereas the Wolves veteran arguably no longer possesses the athleticism to play in both penalty boxes.

Wolves are yet to sign anyone so far this summer, and they look very low on central midfield options.

Morgan Gibbs-White and Connor Ronan could easily still leave Molineux, which would leave Lage's squad looking extremely thin in the middle of the park.

Therefore, signing the £4.5m-rated Almeida would make a lot of sense for the Old Gold this summer; and considering his obvious ability on the ball, he could be the ideal candidate to take over from Moutinho when the 35-year-old leaves the Black Country.

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