Wolverhampton Wanderers have been wanting to sign Nelson Oliveira from Championship rivals Norwich City since last summer.
Wolves have not made too many mistakes in the transfer market over the last year or so.
Nuno Espirito Santo’s side are nine points clear at the top of the Championship and look certainties for promotion with some of the most talented players ever seen in the second tier adorning their squad, from Ruben Neves to Diogo Jota, Willy Boly to Barry Douglas.
But it was a player they failed to lure to Molineux who made the difference as Wolves dropped points at home on Wednesday night.
They were seconds away from a 2-1 win against Norwich City until Nelson Oliveira struck late on, with his 30-yard pot shot dipping and swerving through the grasp of goalkeeper John Ruddy and into the corner of the Wolves net.
Just to rub salt into the wounds, Wolves have had more than enough chances to bring the former Benfica wonder-kid to the Black Country.
The Sunday People reported last summer that Wolves were keen on the £8 million-rated Oliveira whose agent, Jorge Mendes, plays a big role in recruitment at Molineux. The Sun then claimed in January that Nuno’s side were still keen – before instead signing Rafa Mir from Valencia, the young Spanish striker who has been rarely seen so far in amber.
Wolves look like a Premier League side already, but a couple of dodgy results since the turn of the year have not been helped by the lack of a reliable goalscorer, with Leo Bonatini’s drought now standing at 13 games.
Oliveira, meanwhile, has eight in 20 starts and, on last night’s evidence, could be their missing link.
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