I had a ‘big dispute’ with Jeff Shi before Wolves sacking
Jeff Shi was not behind Wolves’ transfer strategy with pressure from above to balance the books.
That is according to ex-Everton, Aston Villa, and Aberdeen chief executive Keith Wyness, speaking exclusively to Football Insider, after Shi was sacked by Wolves.
Wolves fans have been protesting against the ownership at matches this season, with Rob Edwards’ side looking certain to be relegated to the Championship.
The club is not up for sale, but Wolves’ valuation could drop by £100million on relegation from the Premier League.
Jeff Shi not culpable for Wolves transfer dealings
Everton’s former chief Keith Wyness – who served as CEO at Goodison Park between 2004 and 2009 and now runs a football consultancy advising elite clubs – has revealed he has previously had a “big dispute” with Shi whilst at Aston Villa.
Speaking on the new edition of Football Insider‘s Inside Track podcast, Wyness believes Wolves‘ transfer strategy in recent windows has not been the fault of Shi.
He told Football Insider‘s Inside Track podcast: “Well, the stories that have come out since. Look, I dealt with Jeff Shi when I was at Villa. We had a big dispute actually about the role of Jorge Mendes in running Wolves, which I thought would overstep some of the regulations about outside involvement.
“And it’s emerged certainly that he was basically seen to be micromanaging the club in many ways, and getting involved in a lot of decisions at lower levels that a chief executive really shouldn’t be getting involved in.
“I think obviously the thing that’s done for him was the transfer window dealings last season and the couple of seasons before the last two seasons really, where they’ve sold off a lot of talent.
“And I’ve got no doubt that’s not really his making. I think that would have been pressure from Fosun to get the financial books into good shape. So I don’t know if it’s necessarily Jeff Shi who was calling that strategy. I think the pressure would have come from above.”
Key trio could depart Wolves
Wolves are preparing themselves for bids on key players in the January window, with stars likely to depart Molineux.
Joao Gomes, Jorgen Strand Larsen and David Moller Wolfe could all depart, with interest from Premier League clubs in the trio.
Edwards will be looking ahead to next season in the second tier, with a 16-point gap currently between Wolves and safety in the Premier League.