Express & Star

Jeff Shi: Europe would not make Wolves buy in bulk

Chairman Jeff Shi has reaffirmed Wolves will not make panic buys if they get into Europe – but wants the club's youngsters to 'step up' if needed.

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If Manchester City win Saturday's FA Cup final against Watford, Wolves – through finishing seventh in the Premier League – will be in the Europa League qualifiers.

They would face three two-legged ties to make it to the group stage, but boss Nuno Espirito Santo has said before those extra games would not force him to add lots to his squad of 16 senior outfield players.

And Shi said: "I have talked with Nuno and he thought the philosophy will be the same.

"We will still try to keep a small squad and will not think that because we have one more tournament to compete in, we will have to get more players, because if you go out of the tournament early you then have to think about how you deal with them.

"We will not do this kind of thing, we will still try to keep a short squad – as Nuno wants – but in the meantime, it requires higher quality from our academy players because sometimes what you need is them; they can step up, they can help the team.

"If we go to Europe – fingers crossed – I don’t think it will just be about improving the first-team.

"It’s about improving the squad for our under-23s and under-18s so they will be ready when we need them."

Max Kilman, Ryan Giles and Niall Ennis are a few of the younger players who could be called upon if Wolves get into Europe, which Shi says would be a 'good challenge'.

On potential qualification, he added: "We would be happy, of course, but it’s also something we would have to think about carefully.

"It would change the whole process, because if you qualify for the Europa League, the games will start very soon.

“It would be a challenge, but you would also be on a stage in Europe. It will improve the profile of the club and the players – so long term, it would be a good thing for us, in general it’s a good thing.

"But from my view, I’m always thinking about the challenge and how to tackle that.

"Of course, the fans would be happy, but we would have to think carefully about how to do the job.”