Wolves could sign a solid EFL star

The era of Gary O’Neil a Wolverhampton Wanderers it’s done and dusted, finally.

With the appointment of a new manager just days later, they got off to the perfect start under Vitor Pereira at the weekend, scoring three goals against Leicester City to secure just the third. Premier League win of the season.

While immediate thoughts will be on the upcoming league games, the new manager will surely have an eye on the January transfer window, especially as he could strengthen his squad by signing a few players.

With that in mind, the Old Gold have been linked with a couple of players, including a defending champion…

Wolves are looking for a move for the defending champions

According to reports late last week, The wolves are pushing to secure a deal for Sunderland centre-back Daniel Ballard in the transfer window.

They are not alone, however, with Premier League sides Aston Villa, Newcastle United, Crystal Palace and Brighton and Hove Albion showing plenty of interest in the defender.

Wolves have he conceded 40 goals in just 17 games this season in the top flight, which is the worst defensive record in the league, suggesting a new defender or two wouldn’t go amiss in the winter window.

Could this see Pereira turn to the Sunderland titan next month as someone who could help prop things up?

Why Dan Ballard would be a good signing for the Wolves

Ballard came through Arsenal’s youth academy, making many appearances for the Under-18s and Under-21s without ever breaking into the senior set-up.

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Loan spells at Swindon Town, Blackpool and Millwall allowed him to gain plenty of first-team experience before joining Sunderland permanently in the summer of 2022.

Two and a half years later, Ballard has made 77 appearances for black cats, at the same time as well accumulating 26 games for Northern Ireland in the process

Acclaimed as a “natural leader” by Michael O’Neil, the defender has enjoyed a good run of form for his club recently, despite missing a number of games during the start of the season with a knee injury.

It has started Championship of seven previous games for Sunderland, who have lost just once in that run, conceding seven goals in those games.

It doesn’t just have Ballard had an average pass success rate of 89%. The 25-year-old has also won a total of 5.3 duels per game, a success rate of 67%, while losing possession just six times per game and making 0.7 tackles per game.

Indeed, some impressive stats and that defensive solidity have seen Sunderland settle into the play-off places as they currently sit in fourth place, five points behind leaders Sheffield United.

If he can continue to impress over the next few weeks, Pereira will surely be keeping an eye on him, who could see the Old Gold approach once the January window opens.

Given the club’s defensive struggles, who also conceded the highest number of set-piece goals in the division, the defender could be a dream first signing for the new manager.

Maybe he could be one to fix their issues at the back and consequently keep them in the division. Time will tell.

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