Alious
Wolverhampton Wanderers fans are once again venting their frustrations following the latest player departure, this time aimed at the club’s youth development system after academy graduate Chem Campbell officially left the club on a permanent transfer.
While supporters were already grappling with the emotional blow of Rayan Ait-Nouri’s high-profile move to Manchester City—just days after Matheus Cunha’s switch to Manchester United—the announcement of Campbell’s exit added salt to the wound. The 22-year-old forward has joined League One side Stevenage, with Wolves inserting a 30% sell-on clause in the deal. But rather than easing concerns, the news has sparked widespread criticism online.
Campbell, who was once heralded as one of Wolves’ brightest prospects since Morgan Gibbs-White, never truly broke into the first team. Since his senior debut in 2022, he managed just 172 minutes of top-flight action and spent most of the last two seasons out on loan at Wycombe Wanderers (twice), Charlton Athletic, and Reading.
Now, many supporters are questioning how a player with his early promise has ended up departing for virtually nothing.
> “Utterly pointless deal,” one fan lamented on X. “He’s not going to sell for anything significant in the future so a sell-on clause is meaningless.”
> “He had a year left, and we give him away for free instead of selling for £750k-£1m,” another echoed, calling the handling of the situation short-sighted.
A recurring theme among the fan responses was disappointment in the club’s academy system. Fans labelled it “useless,” “poorly run,” and accused Wolves of failing to provide pathways to the senior squad for homegrown talent.
> “Our academy is pointless and whoever organises the loans is useless,” one supporter blasted.
> “Really need to start placing more focus on academy output,” another added. “Chem is one of the best we’ve had in years and he’s gone for free to League One.”
There was also a sense that Campbell was capable of playing at a higher level, with some fans suggesting he deserved a Championship move at the very least.
Wolves head coach Vitor Pereira has publicly committed to supporting youth development, but the ongoing trend of academy players being loaned out, marginalized, or sold cheaply has created skepticism among the fanbase. With few recent success stories since Gibbs-White, the pressure is mounting on the club to reform its youth strategy.
There is, however, cautious optimism around Mateus Mane, a current academy prospect appreciated by Pereira. Fans hope Mane’s development will mark the beginning of a more structured and successful approach to youth integration at Molineux.
Still, for many, the departure of Chem Campbell—once seen as a gem of the academy—symbolizes deeper structural issues that Wolves must urgently address if they want to cultivate meaningful homegrown success.
Alious
