Wolves were today in danger of missing out to Championship side Leicester in the race to sign Matt Mills after Reading accepted the Foxes’ £4.5m bid for the defender.

Mills, who had been due to report for the start of pre-season training with Reading today, was instead on his way to have a medical at Leicester as big-spending City attempted to drive through the move.

The agreed fee rises to £5.5m with various add-ons but even as the player was being driven to the East Midlands sources close to the 24-year-old gave Wolves a glimmer of hope, insisting: “There are other clubs involved”.

Although Leicester have offered the better financial package, Mills wants to join Wolves because they offer Premier League football.

Yet it remains to be seen whether Molineux chief chairman Steve Morgan is prepared to match Leicester’s big money offer.

City’ boss Sven-Goran Eriksson has already signed David Nugent, Sean St Ledger, Kaspar Schmeichel, Neil Danns and Lee Peltier in a flurry of transfer activity this summer.

Today’s developments came after McCarthy pleaded for patience as he seeks to strengthen his squad.

The Molineux chief had targeted Premier League experience but has seen Roger Johnson, Paul Konchesky and Craig Gardner out of reach.

“It is harder this time,” admitted the boss. “It’s just difficult signing the right players.

“At the top end of the market, the prices are going up outrageously but people have got to be patient.

“We’re not going to force something to happen. But I always look at the other side of that – we’ve got a group of players who now have two years’ Premier League experience.”