'Medical booked': Millwall beat Bristol City and Swansea City to Premier League transfer

Millwall are set to beat Championship rivals Bristol City and Cardiff City to the signing of Wolves midfielder Luke Cundle as the January transfer window begins to draw to a close.

The Lions had been linked with interest in the 22-year-old earlier this month and now appear to be on the verge of an announcement. The Telegraph reporter John Percy took to social media platform X on Thursday morning to confirm that a £1 million deal had been reached with Wolves for a transfer.

Cundle is set to undergo a medical with Millwall later today in what is a head-turning coup for the London club. Wolves had reportedly rejected a bid from the Lions for the player already in this window.

Millwall set for Premier League signing

The attacking midfielder arrives at The Den following the sale of Romain Esse, who joined Crystal Palace for £12 million this month. The teenager has already made his mark at Selhurst Park, scoring on his debut against Brentford last weekend.

Millwall manager Alex Neil had confirmed his desire to replace the star and now seems to have got his man. The head coach said: "I think we’d certainly be looking to replace Romain. I think we spoke about Aaron Connolly being a replacement for Bradshaw, which I think is a fair comment, but we certainly need to replace Romain.

“Unfortunately we’re not going to be able to replace a like for like naturally, hence the reason why we’re moving Romain potentially to the Premier League for a lot of money. But we’ll do our very best to try and find the best fit, the best quality that we can find to try and bring them.”

Cundle has been a fringe part of the Wolves squad this season having spent loan spells at Swansea City, Plymouth Argyle and Stoke City since 2022.

Cundle is a product of the Wolves academy but has only made seven first team appearances for the side. He was on the bench for three Premier League fixtures this season but did not see any minutes.

Cundle hailed with Phil Foden comparison

The versatile midfielder made his first team debut for Wolves in a Carabao Cup clash against Reading in 2019 and his Premier League debut came in January 2022. When rising through the Wolves academy, the midfielder was compared to Manchester City and England star Phil Foden.

Speaking in 2022 following a win against Newcastle United, Wolverhampton Wanderers U23's coach Jamie Collins said: "We took a little risk with the change of shape and the 'false nine' with no centre-forward. We played Luke (Cundle) up there, 'Phil Foden-esque', and I thought he played really well."

Cundle was also praised by former Wolves boss Bruno Lage when making his first steps in the top flight. Having played 84 minutes in a 2-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur in 2022, Large said: "Maybe Luke can be a key man because it allows us to play with four midfielders.

"It was the way we play here and with the kid from the academy. He is just 19 and I am very happy with him. The most important thing is the confidence he gives to us. He was there against top players playing like he is in the playground."

In other news, Alex O'Neil is navigating somewhat of an injury crisis at The Den ahead of the visit of London rivals QPR this weekend.