Brazil international Matheus Cunha has signed a new 4½-year contract with Wolverhampton Wanderers, the Premier League club announced on Saturday.
The announcement came after Cunha, the club’s top scorer this season with 11 Premier League goals, netted in a 2-0 home win against Aston Villa to lift Wolves out of the relegation zone.
The player had been linked with a move to Arsenal, as well as Nottingham Forest and Chelsea in the January transfer window.
“We can all see his quality on the pitch, but off it he’s developed into a leader of the group, and we’re delighted that he’s signed a new contract,” Wolves chairman Jeff Shi said
“It’s always important to us that we reward our strongest and most impactful players, and Matheus deserves this new deal.”
Aston Villa manager Unai Emery said after the defeat at Molineux that his club will be seeking reinforcements as they chase European success in the Champions League.
“We need some players. We need to replace some players who left. Tomorrow and Monday are the last two days [of the window],” Emery said.
“I think we’ll get some players to help us because we’re in the Champions League last 16.”
Villa are now without 21-year-old Colombian forward Jhon Durán, who signed for Saudi Arabian side Al-Nassr on Friday.
Sources have told ESPN that Villa are close to agreeing on a loan deal for Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford.
“Tomorrow, Monday we will see,” Emery said. “We are working on different players. We will know on Monday how we have finished.”