Mick McCarthy today whetted the appetite of Wolves fans when he backed his two latest signings Steven Mouyokolo and Stephen Hunt to prove major assets for the club.

With five signings costing around £17m completed by mid-June, rarely can the gold and black masses have had cause to be so excited in a close season.

And boss McCarthy, speaking from the World Cup in South Africa, believes the two new boys from Hull will prove cracking acquisitions as Wolves look to improve on last season’s 15^th–placed finish.

Regarding £2.5m Mouyokolo, he said: “Steven’s already got some Premier League experience, but he’s at an age where he’ll continue to develop and we’re confident he’ll prove an excellent addition to the squad.

“As a right-sided centre-back, he will add plenty of quality to our defence.

“Steven is a quick and athletic defender who was one of Hull’s more impressive players last season.

“Like our players, he got better as he learned what the Premier League was all about and finished the campaign particularly strongly.”

Hunt, who cost around £3m, is not expected to be fully fit until October, but McCarthy has been particularly impressed with him.

“He has many qualities, starting with the sort of work ethic and determination which we expect as the bare minimum of any player at Wolves,” said the boss.

“He’s also a very good footballer, with the ability to create plenty of chances as well as chip in with a few goals himself.

“I actually became even more impressed when we played at Hull in January.

“There was all that speculation going on and he still managed to remain professional and produce a good performance, as well as scoring a penalty.

“With his ability and experience at Premier League level he’s going to prove a real asset to the club.

“It’s a sign of how much we think of him that we’ve done the deal even though he won’t be fit for the start of the season.

“But he’ll be fit in time to feature for the majority of the season, and will turn out to be a very important player.

“The very prospect of having a player of that quality available will be a good position for us to be in.”