Ki-Jana Hoever profiled as Sheffield United close in on first signing of January transfer window
Sheffield United are making progress in their quest to sign Ki-Jana Hoever on loan from Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Sheffield United are poised to make Wolverhampton Wanderers right-back Ki-Jana Hoever their first signing of the January transfer window.
It is understood the Blades are closing in on the signing of the Dutchman after submitting an offer to take him on loan for the remainder of the season. It was reported by the Express & Star on Wednesday night that a deal is expected to be wrapped up in the near future.
United boss Chris Wilder has made no secret of his wish to make his mark on his squad during this month’s window over the last few months, and it now looks as though Hoever will be his first recruit of the mid-season window, adding some much-needed depth at right-back.
Femi Seriki is currently the club’s only senior right-back and has been playing with a knee problem in recent weeks. The impending addition of Hoever will ease some of the pressure on the youngster’s shoulders.
With a deal edging closer and closer towards completion, The Star has put together a profile about Hoever ahead of his impending arrival in S2:
Who is Ki-Jana Hoever?
Hoever is a soon-to-be 24-year-old right-back who is currently contracted to Premier League club Wolves. He joined the Midlands outfit in 2020 from Liverpool and has previously represented the Netherlands at various youth levels, including the Under-21s.
What has he done so far?
After stints in the academies at both AZ Alkmaar and Ajax, Hoever moved to England in August 2018, joining Liverpool, who had to pay a small compensation fee to bring him to Anfield. At the time, it was reported he had also attracted interest from the likes of Chelsea, Manchester City and Manchester United.
By December 2018, having impressed for both Liverpool’s Under-18s and U21s, Hoever was invited to train with the first-team. He made his senior debut for the reigning Premier League champions in January 2019, starting a 2-1 defeat to Wolves in the FA Cup third round at Molineux.
Unfortunately for him, that was one of only four first-team appearances he made for the Merseyside outfit, but he did manage to bag himself a goal in just his second appearance for the club, scoring in a 2-0 win over MK Dons in the Carabao Cup third round in September 2019.
After it became clear he was not going to get regular minutes at Anfield, he joined Wolves in September 2020 for, according to Sky Sports, an initial fee of £10million. He was a bit-part player in his first season at Molineux, making 15 appearances across all competitions.
After fulfilling a similar duty the following season, the 2022/23 season saw him sent out on loan to both PSV Eindhoven and later Stoke City. He made 15 appearances for the latter in the second half of the campaign, chipping in with a very respectable four goals and one assist in the Championship.
As a result of his success in Staffordshire, Stoke re-signed Hoever ahead of the 2023/24 season, signing him on loan for the full season, and he once again delivered the goods from right-back, scoring four goals and registering five assists in 40 Championship appearances.
Wolves sent the Dutchman, who will turn 24 next week, out on loan again last season, sending him to French club AJ Auxerre and he made 30 appearances in Ligue 1, scoring one goal and claiming two assists.
He has made eight Premier League appearances for Wolves this season, six of which have been starts. A temporary switch to Bramall Lane should offer him more game time.
What could he bring to United?
With most full-backs in this day and age encouraged to attack and get forward as much as they can, Hoever fits that particular bill. As documented, he was a source of goals and creativity from right-back during his time at Stoke at this level, chipping in with eight goals and registering six assists in 55 Championship appearances.
Also capable of playing as a wing-back, Hoever is much stronger in attacking scenarios than he is defensively. Question marks have often been raised about his defensive capabilities, whereas his attacking threat has earned plenty of plaudits in the last few years.
With Seriki having contributed one goal and four assists from right-back since the start of December, Hoever feels like a perfect fit to compete with the former for the right-back berth and offer Wilder an alternative option for that particular position.
What has been said about him?
Hailing Hoever back in August 2019, after the then-17-year-old had signed a new deal at Anfield, former Liverpool Jurgen Klopp said of the Dutchman: “Ki-Jana is a wonderful kid and a sensational young player who can learn so much. Especially in the Napoli game when he came on, on the left side, it was maybe his best 15 minutes in the pre-season.”
He later added: “You forget so quickly these boys are so young. He’s still 17, it’s just crazy. But everything will be fine, he’s a fantastic footballer and I’m really happy that we have him for longer.”