Wolves re-assess targets after missing out

Head coach Kenny Jackett had been chasing the 22-year-old, but the Northern Ireland international signed for Blues on a season-long loan instead.

Jackett is running the rule over potential replacements for Bakary Sako, if and when the French winger leaves and could turn his attentions to Huddersfield's Danny Ward again.

It's understood Ferguson was considering the possibility of dropping into League One but went with the lure of a Championship side.

It was one where he knew plenty of faces and Blues boss Lee Clark's Newcastle links helped smooth the way for a return to St. Andrew's, where he played 11 games on loan in the spring.

Ferguson becomes the second known left-sided target – and third overall – to have snubbed a move to Wolves in favour of a Championship club this summer.

Manchester City's Jeremy Helan opted to rejoin Sheffield Wednesday in a £300,000 move earlier this month.

Midfielder Luke Murphy also rejected a £1million switch to Molineux in favour of Leeds after leaving Crewe. Ferguson suggested the familiarity of Blues won the day.

He said: "I came for the last two months and that makes it a lot easier this time. I know all the lads and staff here."

Clark said: "It's taken the longest of all the deals, but he was one I wasn't going to give up on."

Meanwhile, Jackett consoled himself in the conviction that he will squeeze every ounce of talent out of his young crop.

He said: "Since I have come in I have only brought one player in, Sam Ricketts. Everyone else I have worked with has already been at the club.

"But perhaps I work in a slightly different way to other managers in that hopefully I can get a lot out of the players here. That's my first task but I really want to work on different combinations.

"One was Danny Batth and Richard Stearman, Tongo Doumbia and David Davis was another one on Saturday that started well and then got over-run, to a degree, but came back towards the end."