Wolves see off Premier League rivals to win transfer battle for Watford player | OneFootball

Wolves have completed the signing of Watford youngster Emilio Ballard-Matthews ahead of several other Premier League sides.

Who is Emilio Ballard-Matthews?

This is most certainly a signing for the future, as Ballard-Matthews is going to link up with Wolves’ academy initially, with the youngster born in 2008.

A skilful attacker, the teenager has been with the Hornets since he was eight, but he has now decided to test himself elsewhere, as reliable reporter Fabrizio Romano revealed that Ballard-Matthews had agreed a move to Wanderers, as he also shared an image of the player holding a Wolves shirt at Molineux.

“Understand Wolves have now won the race to sign Watford and England youth international Emilio Ballard-Matthews. Wolves have sealed the deal today — following interest from a number of Premier League clubs.”

There is a big focus on the academy at Wolves, with the U23 side playing in the top division, whilst the U19s recently won the Next Generation Cup out in India, beating a host of sides to the trophy.

Given his age, Ballard-Matthews is still going to be some way away from playing at that level, but he clearly feels the path to becoming a professional footballer is clearer with Wolves.

It’s been a frustrating period for Watford with their academy players, with Adrian Blake having recently turned down a deal to stay amid top-flight interest.

This is a concern for Watford

Of course, Ballard-Matthews is still developing as a player and is very young, so it’s too soon to say that it’s a massive loss for Watford because we don’t know how his career will play out. However, it’s a worry that they haven’t been able to keep a top academy talent, who clearly has a lot of ability.

The importance of the academy is growing for all clubs in the Football League. In an ideal world you see players progress to make their mark in the first-team, but, if not, you still want to be producing quality that can be sold, as it can help clubs like Watford when it comes to FFP.

So, losing Ballard-Matthews at this age is a worry, particularly as it comes after Blake rejected a contract. There were some positives towards the end of Chris Wilder’s reign as he gave younger players a chance, but that’s an area Watford do need to improve moving forward.