Rio Ferdinand: Wolves will struggle to keep hold of striker Raul Jimenez

The striker was a £30m record signing for Wolves

Rio Ferdinand believes Wolverhampton Wanderers face a struggle to keep hold of star striker Raul Jimenez this summer.

The 29-year-old has netted 26 goals in all competitions this season, with 30 Premier League goals to his name across his two seasons in England.

Wolves look set to secure European football again for next season after a strong second half of 2019/20, but Ferdinand thinks the reliable output of Jimenez means bigger sides will be sounding out a transfer in the coming months.

“I think Wolves will do well to keep hold of him,” he told BT Sport. “I think he’s a player with immense talent and I think his goalscoring record over the last two years has been really good. Before that his record was a bit shady, but he has come to the Premier League and hit the ground running. He’s been a breath of fresh air.

“As you can tell, he seems a great character around the place, and for a top club, I wouldn’t be surprised if they are sniffing.”

Over the past few months, Jimenez has been variously linked to Manchester United and Juventus.

Pressed on whether the Mexican would be a good fit at Old Trafford, Ferdinand said he’d be keen to see the move happen as Jimenez offers “something different” to the current options at the club.

“What I like about him is he scores all types of goals.

“He’s at the back post heading things and bullying defenders, and he can score tremendous goals like that [against Burnley] out of nothing.”