When dissecting just what has gone wrong with Wolverhampton Wanderers, it doesn’t usually take long before the conversation turns to their problems in the final third. Ironically enough, given their name, Wolves’ bark is far more threatening than their bite.
In 15 Premier League games, Julen Lopetegui’s side have scored just eight times so far. That, if you hadn’t already worked out, averages at around a goal every other game. Fail to improve in the opposition penalty area, and Wolves can kiss farewell to Liverpool and Manchester City. Hello to Luton and Middlesbrough.
This is not to say, however, that things are as golden and gleaming as Wolves’ iconic home shirt everywhere else on the pitch. The Nathin Collins-Max Kilman partnership started strongly, but has regressed. The metronomic Ruben Neves, meanwhile, is the only midfielder at Molineux to have performed with any sort of consistency in the last three months. And, just to make matters worse, he is reportedly considering his future.
Wolves’ loss is Fulham’s gain with Portugal international Joao Palhinha
Boubacar Traore has made a good first impression but remains unproven. Matheus Nunes, in a deeper role, feels like a square peg in a round hole. Meanwhile, Father Time appears to be creeping up on the once-evergreen Joao Moutinho; the Portugal international having celebrated his 36th birthday in September.
The decision to send Leander Dendoncker to Aston Villa – denying Wolves their most physical, ground-covering option in the centre of the park – now feels like an odd one. As does their failure to seal the deal for a player who would end up joining a direct Premier League rival for a bargain £17 million, before almost-immediately establishing himself as one of the best pound-for-pound signings of last summer.
According to the Express and Star, Wolves were offered Joao Palhinha. They even held talks with Sporting Lisbon. The club’s hierarchy decided against such an opportunity, however, with Bruno Lage pursuing a more attack-minded addition, Matheus Nunes eventually making the trip from Lisbon to Wolverhampton instead.
If there were any doubts about whether Palhinha could replicate his all-action Primeira Liga displays on UK soil, they have been dispelled in emphatic fashion. No player in England’s top flight averages more tackles per game (4.6). That is far more than Neves (2.9), Moutinho (2.3) or Traore (1.4), per WhoScored.
Despite his defensive-minded role, Palhinha has also scored more goals from open play (two) than anyone in Wolves’ squad. Barring compatriot Neves, that is.
‘The impact he had was very quick’
Heading into the World Cup break (Palhinha has travelled to Qatar with the Portugal squad), Fulham are ninth in the Premier League. 11 places and nine points better off than bottom-dwelling Wolves. Their Portuguese powerhouse is a big reason why.
Palhinha is unlikely to have improved a dismal tally of eight goals in 15 games all that much. What he would have done, however, is make a team with nine defeats to their name already a damn-sight harder to beat.
“I am very satisfied with his adaptation,” Fulham coach Marco Silva tells 11 Sports of Palhinha. “The impact he had on our team was very quick.
“All we can do is give you the tools so that you can be a better player every day. And I have the certainty that, in the future, he will be even better.”
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