Wolves will activate a purchase clause in their loan deal for Manchester City midfielder Tommy Doyle at the end of the season, the club’s head coach Gary O’Neil has confirmed.
Wolves signed Doyle on loan with a view to a permanent deal last August, after sending Matheus Nunes the other way in a deal worth £53million to the Molineux club.
Doyle had to bide his time after arriving in the West Midlands with Mario Lemina and Joao Gomes impressing in the heart of O’Neil’s midfield – the latter earning a senior Brazil debut against England and being linked with Manchester United and Arsenal.
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However, he has impressed while making 22 Premier League appearances for Wolves, 10 of them starts, and scored his first goal for the club in an FA Cup draw against Brentford in January – a stunning 25-yard strike.
Doyle’s loan agreement reportedly allows Wolves to purchase him for a cut-price £4.3m, and after working under financial constraints this season, O’Neil expects them to do so in the summer transfer window.
“I would expect him to be here next year,” O’Neil said of Doyle. “Hopefully we can get that done fairly quickly in the summer. I know he feels settled and I know he’s enjoying it.
“We’re delighted with how he’s done, so I don’t foresee any issues with that one being done.”
Great support yesterday, plenty of positives!
Onto Wednesday 🐺 🧡 PIC.TWITTER.COM/82DDWEGZUM— Tommy Doyle (@Tommy_Doyle8) APRIL 21, 2024
The England Under-21 international has produced a series of composed midfield performances for a Wolves team that many expected to struggle, but were instead fighting for European qualification before a series of injuries derailed their campaign.
“He’s been able to show his real strengths in certain moments, especially when we’re able to dominate the ball, he gives us something,” O’Neil said.
“Joao Gomes and Mario Lemina have had fantastic seasons, so the fact Tommy has managed to impact it as well as he has, with them two doing as well as they have, tells you how well Tommy has performed.”
