Mario Lemina: Wolves complete signing of midfielder from Nice
- Published
Mario Lemina has scored once and registered one assist in 22 appearances for Nice this season
Wolves have completed the signing of Nice midfielder Mario Lemina for a fee believed to be about 11m euros (£9.7m).
The former Southampton player has signed a two-and-a-half-year deal with the option of a further year.
The 29-year-old Gabon international joined Southampton in 2017 and his stint at the club included loan spells at Galatasaray and Fulham.
Lemina joined Nice in 2021 and has made 22 appearances for them this season, scoring once.
"Mario is a good player," Wolves boss Julen Lopetegui said.
"We know him, he wants to be here, and he knows the English league. I think that he has the profile to be a good player for us. That's why he's here and I wish him all the best.
"He has the profile to help us to improve and to be able to improve our performance in the next matches."
Sporting director Matt Hobbs said the club had been tracking the player for some time.
"He isn't someone who has come up since Julen came in, he's a player were able to sign in the past but hasn't progressed to this point until now. Our scouting team pushed him last summer and the transfer wasn't possible, but we're pleased Julen had the same belief in Mario that we had.
"When the manager came in, he had enquired about the player when he was at Seville, so has had a long-term interest and the club have had a long-term interest, so in some ways it was fate that we were able to do it now."
Wolves have pledged to bolster the new manager's squad, with up to six new signings expected this month, although not all will be regarded as regular starters.
The club have already brought in Matheus Cunha from Atletico Madrid, while other players on their radar include West Ham defender Craig Dawson, Manchester United full-back Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Paris St-Germain's attacking midfielder Pablo Sarabia, who spent last season on loan with Portuguese side Sporting Lisbon.
West Ham boss David Moyes revealed earlier on Friday that his club had turned down an offer from Wolves for Dawson.
Wolves are 19th in the Premier League and have a crucial game against the fourth-from-bottom Hammers at Molineux on Saturday.
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