Wolverhampton Wanderers defender Maximilian Kilman has signed a new deal at the club until the summer of 2028.
Kilman, 26, was under contract at Wolves until 2026, with a one-year extension option, and had attracted interest from other clubs earlier in the transfer window.
Wolves turned down a €35million (£30.2m, $38,4m) offer for Kilman from Napoli in July and were not prepared to accept anything less than €40m for the centre-back.
“This is what Max deserves,” Wolves sporting director Matt Hobbs said. “We’ve been talking to Max since the end of last season and his evolution, not just through the club, but through his role in the first team, has built a strong foundation for him.
“There was lots of interest in Max, we had several offers, but we haven’t shifted in wanting him to stay. We believe he’s the soul of the team, having been here for a long time now, so he was never a player we considered selling.
“In what’s been an unsettled time for the club, announcing a new head coach and our captain committing long-term shows the noise outside doesn’t match what we feel is going on inside.”
Wolves appointed Gary O’Neil as their head coach last week after Julen Lopetegui left the role by mutual consent just a few days before the start of the 2023-24 Premier League season.
O’Neil, the former Bournemouth coach, appointed Kilman as Wolves’ new club captain shortly after arriving, with that role vacant after Ruben Neves’ summer departure to Al Hilal.
Kilman played in all but one of Wolves Premier League games last season and has been a first-team regular for the past two and a half seasons. He joined Wolves from Maidenhead in 2018 and has played 107 times for the Molineux club.
Wolves begin their season on Monday with a trip to Manchester United.
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