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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Sport
Fabrizio Romano

Wolves captain Rúben Neves set to join Al-Hilal in Saudi Arabia for £47m

Rúben Neves in action for Wolves
Rúben Neves is expected to seal his move to Al-Hilal when he returns from international duty with Portugal. Photograph: Jack Thomas/WWFC/Wolverhampton Wanderers FC/Getty Images

Al-Hilal have offered Wolves a club record £47m deal to sign their captain, Rúben Neves, with the Portugal midfielder expected to finalise a move to the Saudi Arabian club this week.

Neves, who is out of contract with Wolves at the end of next season having joined from Porto in 2017, has been a target for Barcelona for some time but they have yet to agree a deal for him. That delay has allowed Al-Hilal to submit their sizeable offer for the 26-year-old, with talks ongoing between the club and his agent, Jorge Mendes, and Neves likely to complete the move when he returns from international duty next week.

It is understood Mendes has been instrumental in sealing the deal with Al-Hilal, who have also offered the Chelsea forward Romelu Lukaku a lucrative contract but failed with their attempts to sign Luka Modric from Real Madrid despite him reportedly being offered a three-year contract worth £170m. The £47m fee, which would surpass the initial £40m Liverpool paid for Diogo Jota in 2020, will be a significant boost for Wolves in a transfer window where they must first raise funds to ease financial fair play concerns.

Elsewhere, Bayern Munich have agreed a five-year deal to sign Kim Min-jae from Napoli.

The South Korea defender, who has also been linked with Manchester United, has a €50m release clause that becomes valid on 1 July and could still receive proposals from other clubs.

Barcelona are closing in on a deal with Athletico Paranaense for Vitor Roque, with talks believed to be at final stages. The 18-year-old forward is expected to cost €35m plus €10m add-ons having agreed a contact until 2028.

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