If you would have told me about seven years ago Wolves had signed a well-established player from Barcelona, and a Wonder Boy shortlisted player I would have laughed in your face. However, times have changed here, and Wolves transfer windows are a lot more action-packed now.
Wolves failure to bag a European spot this term was a make or break moment for the club, it was hard to see vital players such as Jiménez and Adama staying; especially with teams like Juventus knocking on the door. Getting players in was going to be a must if we wanted to push for Europa, or even Champions League next season and I think Nuno has done the best he can with the resources he has. His preference of a limited squad of hard workers is evident, less room for unrest in the dressing room and a core of players who he knows can perform to the wanted level.
Starting with player departures at Wolves, it’s been a busy window in terms of letting players go. Two very surprising departures were Jota and Doherty, two key players in the rise of Wolves from the ashes and two players I was gutted to see go. The Doherty to Spurs deal seemed to take an eternity to go through, and it seemed at one point to have stalled and we would retain one of our most beloved players. However, it was not to be, a reported £15 million was the fee received for the services of Doherty; a head-scratcher for most fans.
Jota on the other hand was a piece of business that seemed to come out of thin air, a big loss for the squad with Jota being one of our biggest stars. However, Nuno must have faith in Podence and Neto for one to slot into Jota’s spot, Podence has looked really dangerous in the first few games and in my opinion will really prove himself a baller worth a spot in the starting eleven.
It’s looking likely that Vinagre will leave for Olympiakos on a loan to buy deal, the LWB looked to be a promising and tricky dribbler; however, it’s not really worked out for Vinagre at Wolves and doesn’t seem to fit into Nuno’s plans. Other notable loan outs include Morgan Gibbs-White, Jordao, Campana, Bonatini and Ronan. Morgan has had a bright start at Swansea being a key playmaker for them and impressing early. Jordao, Campana and Ronan, as well as Dadashov, will all look to get valuable minutes out on loan with hopes of breaking into the Wolves team in the future.
The transfer window started slow for Wolves, it was looking bleak and it was really an up in the air topic if Nuno was going to be given the funds he wanted to elevate the squad. However, the signing of Fabio Silva who is touted to be the next Ronaldo by some really started the cogs of our transfer window. The 18-year-old striker came via Porto, and he’s come with a hefty price tag, but more importantly a high potential. He’s been nominated for this year’s Wonderboy award and is Porto’s youngest ever starter. The question is can he perform in the Premier League? It’s soon to tell and it probably won’t be a while until that answer can be fully answered.
As well as Fabio Silva, we also saw the arrival of Vitinha from Porto. He’s another highly-rated Portuguese youngster from the Liga NOS outfit and seems to be the long-term replacement for the now ageing Moutinho. Like Moutinho, he can hold his own in midfield and possesses the ability to create upfront.
Arguably the most established player we have signed in the window will be Semedo, who came from Barcelona as a replacement for Doherty. The Portuguese right-back is full of pace and is decent when it comes to attacking, the right side when partnered with Adama will be one to watch. I think it will take a few games for him to gauge the speed of the Prem and gel with the team, but I think especially come Christmas time he will come into his own and show his class. A great bit of business from the club.
After Lyons deep run in the Champions League last season, new signing Marcal will offer bags of experience in either the left wing-back role, or slotting into the defence. Seems like a big focus of this window was to sure up the flanks, this being a pivotal position in how Nuno expects his squad to play. Marcal’s experience should help a squad with an average age of 22 and guide these young players back into a European spot.
Finally, Rayan Ait-Nouri was the finishing touch to in my opinion a quite successful transfer market, and it seems like someone at Wolves has been playing a bit too much Football Manager. The likes of Nouri, Hoever and Fabio Silva will hopefully prosper in the Prem and live up to the hype.
Another central midfielder would have been nice with Moutinho looking to be slowing down but with just three months until the next window Wolves are happy with waiting.
We’d love to know your thoughts on the window. Leave your comments below!
Zach Cartwright is part of the Talking Wolves editorial team – you can follow him on Twitter here.