Wolverhampton Wanderers youngster Austin Samuels is headed for Oldham Athletic on loan, according to Adam Millington.

The lowdown

The 20-year-old has yet to make his senior debut for Wolves but does have experience at first team level, having spent the first half of the 2020/21 season on loan at League Two outfit Bradford City.

He was limited to six league starts, and his only goal for the Bantams came in a 7-0 FA Cup victory over Tonbridge. Wolves opted to cut the loan short in January.

Samuels has netted a total of 29 goals for Wanderers at under-18 and under-23 level. After he scored twice in a 4-0 win over Newcastle under-23s in April, coach James Collins hailed him as "excellent" and noted the "poacher's' instinct" he had displayed.

Samuels featured for the first team as a late substitute in a 1-0 friendly defeat against Crewe Alexandra on 17 July.

The latest

Millington tweeted: "I understand that #wwfc’s Austin Samuels is set to join #oafc on loan.

"Pacy striker who signed a contract extension with Wolves in the summer. Spent some of last season on loan at Bradford City."

Prior to the contract extension that Millington noted, Samuels' deal had been due to expire at the end of the season.

The verdict

The key for Samuels is to force his way into the starting line up. It's far harder to build rhythm and make an impact when limited to runouts from the bench, which was often his lot at Bradford.

Wolves will also hope that he can find the net in more competitive fixtures against high-calibre opposition, with his only previous senior goal coming against a National League side.

If his goal return is minimal, then it's very hard to see him making a breakthrough at Molineux despite his strong form at youth level. Samuels could face a pivotal spell at Oldham over the months ahead as he seeks to prove himself to his parent club.

In other news, these Wolves fans react to the possibility of a £45m exit from Molineux.