Ruben Neves 'to join Al-Hilal, with talks advanced after Saudi side's £47m bid'

Saudi Pro League club Al-Hilal have reportedly submitted a £47million bid to sign Wolves star Ruben Neves.

The Wolves captain had seemed poised for a move to Barcelona, with the player even agreeing terms with the Catalan club last month but negotiations between the two sides have failed to progress.

According to a report from Spanish publication Relevo, Barcelona's interest in the 26-year-old was more at the behest of agent Jorge Mendes, with the club ultimately opting to prioritise other targets in midfield.

With the move to Barca floundering, Al-Hilal decisively entered the race to sign the Portugal international.

Personal terms between the player and the Riyadh-based club are currently ongoing, but Neves is said to be interested in joining the side that finished third in the Saudi top flight last season.

Should the transfer be completed at the reported figure, it will surpass the £42m Liverpool paid for Diogo Jota in 2020 as the the highest transfer fee the club has ever recieved for a player.

Neves joined Wolves in 2017, and in his maiden season at Molineux was instrumental in helping the club top the Championship under Nuno Espirito Santo and gain promotion to the Premier League.

Since then the former Porto star has remained an integral part of the team, and was handed the armband by Bruno Lage at the start of the season, captaining the club to a 13th and finishing as his side's joint-top scorer in the Premier League.

Should Neves make the switch to the Saudi Pro League he would be joining superstars such as Cristiano Ronaldo, and more recently, Karim Benzema in the country.

At Al-Hilal, he could count former Premier League stars Matheus Pereira and Andre Carrillo as teammates.