Wolverhampton Wanderers can overall be pleased with how their 2023/24 campaign went, despite what looked like it could be a tough season for the Midlands side after Julen Lopetegui left so close to the start.

In fact, Phil McNulty, the BBC’s chief football writer, predicted them to come 18th in the Premier League, explaining that he had a “very, very worrying feeling” about last season.

However, it did not turn out that way. Instead, Gary O’Neil’s exciting transitional football helped his side reach 14th in the Premier League table, earning 46 points in total. They were just three points behind 10th place Crystal Palace, and at times during the season, a top-half finish did not seem out of reach.

Wolves did somewhat overachieve last season, however. According to Understat’s expected points metric, they should have earned just 39.79xPTS, a far cry from the 46 points they actually won. As per the expected points table, this would have placed Wolves 17th in the table.

A lot of this overperformance was down to some of their star players standing up for the count. O’Neil’s system suited many of them perfectly, and it helped the Midlands side to an impressive finish in the end. However, there are recent rumours that one of those key players could be on his way out of Molineux this summer.

Wolves could lose key attacker

The player in question here is Wolves and South Korea attacker Hwang Hee-chan. It has been a very impressive campaign for the 28-year-old, which has led to one of Europe’s elite clubs targeting him this summer.

According to a report from French news outlet L’Equipe, the South Korea international is “part of the list” of potential new attackers wanted by French giants Olympique Marseille. This is a move that has been approved by Roberto de Zerbi, the club’s new manager who took on the job after leaving Brighton at the end of last season.

Marseille are, at this current time, thought to be the only club who are in the running to sign Hwang this summer. Furthermore, they have yet to open talks with Wolves over a move for the 28-year-old.

At this stage, a price for the South Korean has not been officially named in the media. However, Hwang is valued at £13.6m by Football Transfers. Given his contract does not expire until 2028, he could cost anywhere between that value or even more, as Wolves are under no pressure to sell him this summer.

Hwang’s parallels to former Wolves star

The South Korean has been a vital player for O’Neil this season. He played 29 times in the Premier League, scoring 12 goals, and registering three assists along the way, He is a quick, direct attacker who possesses good movement in the penalty box, perfect for their system.

Last season, the 28-year-old registered the second-most amount of goal involvements for the Molineux side in the top flight. His 15 goals and assists were only beaten by fellow attacker Matheus Cunha, who was directly involved in 19 goals and assists last season, as per SofaScore.

Should the 28-year-old depart Molineux this summer, it would be similar to when Diogo Jota left Wolves for Liverpool in 2020 for £41m. They would be losing a key player to a big European powerhouse, just as they did when Jota left the club four years ago.

Wolves initially loaned the South Korean, but then made the signing of Hwang permanent in January 2022, when Bruno Lage was in charge at Molineux.

They paid £14m for him, just slightly more than the £12.8m they paid for the Portugal international. However, the similarities don’t end there, as Jota was also bought permanently after joining the club on a loan deal initially.

Since leaving Wolves, Jota has gone on to do great things at Anfield, including reaching a Champions League final and lifting the Carabao Cup twice and the FA Cup. He was superb at the Midlands side, and his record speaks for itself. It is even better than Hwang’s record, who struggled to find the back of the net at times before last season.

Stat

Hwang

Jota

Games

94

131

Minutes

5576

9362

Goals

22

44

Assists

7

19

Wolves are in a powerful position when it comes to selling Hwang this summer, given his contract has another four years left to run. Whilst it is unlikely to stop them selling him if an offer comes in, they should do all they can to keep him at the club.

He is central to O’Neil’s system, and is clearly a player who the manager rates highly. He explained in an interview last season that Hwang gives Wolves "something very different".

Should they part ways with the 28-year-old this summer, he would be a big loss to Wolves as they hope to climb up the table next season and push for a top half finish, which is why the manager is now at risk of another Jota situation for the club as Marseille show interest in the forward.