Wolves Have ‘Strong’ Interest in Signing ‘Complete’ South American

Wolverhampton Wanderers are monitoring Club Brugge defender Joel Ordonez, whose stock is growing at the Jan Breydel Stadium in Bruges, as per BBC Sport journalist Nick Mashiter.

Vitor Pereira’s men have turned a corner since the Portuguese coach succeeded Gary O’Neil in mid-December. They have two and drawn one of their three games, including a brilliant 2-0 win over Manchester United at Molineux.

Wolves still find themselves in a relegation scrap, sitting 17th, a point above the drop as they head into the second half of the season. Pereira will need his defence to be resolute as he looks to guide the Old Gold further up the Premier League table.

Pereira looks set to use the January transfer window to strengthen at the back and has his sights set on Ordonez and also Millwall’s Japhet Tanganga. They have shipped 42 goals in the league, the joint-worst record alongside Leicester City.

Wolves Want Club Brugge’s ‘Aggressive’ Ordonez

The young centre-back is an exciting prospect

Mashiter claims Ordonez is on Wolves’ radar, and the Premier League club is showing ‘strong interest’ in the 20-year-old. He joined Brugge from Club NXT in the summer of 2023 and took no time establishing himself as a regular starter.

Ordonez has received glowing reviews for his playing characteristics, being described as a ‘very aggressive front-footed centre-back’ who also isn’t rash in his decision-making.

Chelsea and Liverpool have also been keeping tabs on Ordonez amid his meteoric rise in Belgium becoming a ‘complete’ talent. He made his international debut in March 2024 and looks to be the latest exciting Ecuadorian talent, following in the footsteps of the Blues’ Moises Caicedo and Brighton & Hove Albion’s Pervis Estupinan.

Joel Ordone Belgian Pro League Stats
Appearances	15
Goals	1
Clean Sheets	4
Interceptions Per Game	1.1
Tackles Per Game	0.9
Balls Recovered Per Game	2.7
Clearances Per Game	3.7
Ground Duels Won	1.6 (47%)
Aerial Duels Won	1.3 (54%)

Ordonez recently expressed his desire to eventually end up in the Premier League amid the growing interest in his services. But he insisted he was focused on helping Brugge win the Belgian Pro League, and they are second, a point behind leaders Genk.

The four-cap Ecuador international was excellent in his side’s surprise 1-0 win against Aston Villa in the UEFA Champions League. He made eight clearances, completed three long ball attempts and kept the usually dangerous Ollie Watkins and Jhon Duran quiet.