So far in the January transfer window, Wolves have made just one new addition, bringing in Japanese midfielder Hayao Kawabe from Swiss Super League side Grasshopper Club Zurich.

However, with Wolves' official website stating that the player is expected to return to Switzerland on loan to complete the season with Grasshoppers after spending January in England, it could be worth signing another player who will actually spend the remainder of the current campaign in Bruno Lage's squad.

With that in mind, one player that Wolves could sign who would not only be unlikely to be loaned back out upon arrival at Molineux but also have a great chance of playing regularly in the team is Renato Sanches.

Having been linked with a move for the Lille midfielder during last summer's transfer window, this month could give Wolves a great chance of finally securing the 24-year-old.

Since joining Lille back in 2019 from Bayern Munich, the Portuguese maestro has made 76 appearances for the French club across all competitions, scoring six goals and providing six assists in the process.

Imagine him and Neves

Described as a player who has "got a lot of character" by BBC pundit Jermaine Jenas, Sanches has shown what a quality midfield player he can be, averaging 1.4 key passes per game in Ligue 1 this season. That is higher than any other Lille player and also exceeds every Wolves player in 2021/22 except Raul Jimenez, who is tied with him on 1.4 but with a much lower passing completion rate according to WhoScored.

This shows that the £27m-rated Portugal gem could provide a big boost for Wolves, particularly in an attacking regard, with only rock-bottom Norwich City having scored fewer goals than Lage's side in the Premier League this season. Imagine him alongside compatriot Ruben Neves, who is the only Wolves player other than Jimenez to have both scored a goal and provided an assist in the league this season, and how that could greatly bolster the Old Gold's attacking threat.

Moving forward, Wolves should definitely make another approach to Lille before the end of the month to see if they would be willing to negotiate a deal for Sanches this month or even in next summer's transfer window.

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