Lee Hughes reveals Wolves' £5 million-plus bid in 2001
Lee Hughes says Wolves made a £5 million-plus move for him in 2001 while he was at West Brom, but there was “no chance” of him joining Molineux. The former striker said the approach came after Coventry City triggered his £5,000,001 release clause, turning a transfer scramble into a rare direct contact between Black Country rivals.
Dave Jones’ phone call
Hughes recalled the call from Dave Jones, then Wolves manager: “I was at West Bromwich Albion, and Coventry came in for £5,000,001 - next thing you know, I got a phone call, it was Dave Jones, the Wolverhampton Wanderers manager.” He said he first thought the call was a joke before Jones asked whether he would be interested in signing for Wolves from West Brom.
Jones did not stop there. Hughes said the Wolves offer was to match Coventry’s bid and improve the wages on top, a move that put him in an immediate position to choose between the two clubs.
West Brom and Wolves rivalry
He turned it down at once. “no chance,” Hughes said of the idea of joining Wolves, before recalling Jones’ reply: “Don’t you know how big this club is?” The exchange underlines how unusual the route would have been, with direct moves between West Brom and Wolves rare enough to stand out even against one of English football’s fiercest rivalries.
That backdrop matters because West Brom and Wolves have lived through the rivalry from both sides. Wolves beat West Brom 2-0 at The Hawthorns in the FA Cup in January 2024, a match overshadowed by significant spectator violence, and both clubs will be in the Championship next season.
Hughes’ West Brom route
Hughes had joined West Brom from Kidderminster Harriers in 1997 for £380,000 and scored 23 goals in that season. By the end of the 2000-01 campaign, West Brom had been in the First Division for eight years and finished in the play-off spots under Gary Megson, only to lose to Bolton Wanderers in the semi-final.
Coventry’s bid changed Hughes’ path. After West Brom had transfer listed him following a rejected contract offer, Coventry triggered his £5 million release clause, he signed for them after hanging up on Jones, and he scored 14 goals in his debut season at Highfield Road. West Brom later won promotion to the Premiership without him, then brought him back in summer 2002 for £2.5 million, after also trying to sign him on loan for the final batch of First Division games before his return.
