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Championship club Wolverhampton Wanderers could face scrutiny after reportedly preventing Nigerian striker Tolu Arokodare from training with the first team, despite FIFA’s newly introduced player protection regulations aimed at ending such practices.
According to reports, Wolves cancelled Monday’s training session after Arokodare refused to leave the pitch when instructed not to train with the rest of the squad. On Tuesday, the club reportedly deployed additional security at their Compton Park training ground to prevent the 25-year-old from returning.
The incident comes only weeks into the tenure of new manager Cesar Peixoto, who replaced Rob Edwards after Wolves were relegated from the Premier League following a last-place finish.
Arokodare, who scored six goals in 38 appearances last season, has been linked with a move away from Molineux during the summer transfer window, with Serie A sides Genoa and Fiorentina reportedly interested in signing him.
Fiorentina are also said to have had an offer rejected earlier this month, while the Nigerian forward reportedly turned down a move to Turkish side Trabzonspor.
The striker is not expected to feature in Wolves’ pre-season friendly against non-league Maidenhead United on Wednesday, with his exclusion from first-team training widely seen as a firm stance by the club’s new manager.
However, the situation has attracted attention because FIFA recently introduced sweeping amendments to its Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players following an agreement with global players’ union FIFPRO.
Under the revised regulations, clubs are prohibited from forcing players to train separately from the first team or placing them in so-called “bomb squads” to pressure them into accepting transfers.
Explaining the reforms, FIFPRO said the changes were designed to better protect players from abusive practices.
“Players will be better protected from abusive practices. Demoting players, forcing them to train in isolation as a form of pressure, withholding passports or abusing registration procedures are now expressly prohibited. These practices have affected too many players for too long and have no place in modern football,” the union said.
Wolves have strengthened their squad ahead of the new campaign with the arrivals of Kieran Trippier and Raúl Jiménez on free transfers, while Rafiki Said joined for a reported £7.7 million. The club also completed the permanent signing of defender Ladislav Krejčí after his successful loan spell, taking its summer spending to about £26 million.
