Wolves: Vítor Pereira dismisses former captain until the end of the transfer window
Mario Lemina is with the group, but the Portuguese coach prefers not to use him in the games
Wolverhampton Wanderers midfielder Mario Lemina will not play while the January transfer window is open. It was coach Vitor Pereira himself who assured him of this, following actions in recent days.
Lemina , 31, wants to leave the club and asked not to play against Newcastle last Wednesday (3-0 defeat). His last game was on the 6th, against Nottingham Forest (0-3).
The Gabonese international had apologised to Vítor Pereira and the rest of the squad and said he was “ready to give his best for the team”, but the Portuguese coach did not seem convinced.
“For me, he is out [of the team] until the end of the transfer window. When the transfer window closes, I will see if he is my player. If he is, it will be a problem for me to solve, because he is a good player; or he leaves and it is not my problem. I do not want a player with doubts, I cannot play with a player who has doubts in his head. I want players committed to the project,” he said after Monday’s Premier League game against Chelsea .
“He is training, but at the moment his mind is not here, because he still wants to leave. I have to be honest and say what happened. So I will wait until the end of the market to see,” he added.
According to the BBC, Saudi Arabia’s Al Shabab – coincidentally the club that Vitor Pereira left to take over at Wolves – are interested in the Gabonese international.
The transfer window closes on Monday, February 3. Until then, Wolves host Arsenal and Aston Villa .
Lemina has not had it easy in recent months. He started the season as team captain but was removed from the role by former manager Gary O’Neil after an on-field disagreement with West Ham ‘s Jarrod Bowen , with the armband going to Portuguese Nelson Semedo , something Vitor Pereira retained.
Lemina has played just 31 minutes since Pereira was appointed O’Neil’s successor on December 19.
“We can make mistakes in life, I made some mistakes in my life,” Pereira said on Friday, when he revealed that Lemina had apologized. “I believe he spoke from the heart and he will try, I am here to see if he can or not. If he can help, fine; if he can’t, I prefer someone else who is committed,” he added.
