Nuno Espirito Santo has made Adama Traore almost unplayable this season but he isn’t the only one who has been transformed by the Wolves boss.
Nuno Santo has been hailed by many for his work with Adama Traore. The former Barcelona man was viewed as an inconsistent winger whose only positive trait was his pace.
However, this season, he has become one of the best players in the league scoring six times and providing 10 assists in all competitions so far.
Santo certainly deserves all the praise in the world for the incredible change in Traore’s performances. But the 24-year-old is not the only player who has exceeded expectations this term.
Romain Saiss started just 12 games in the league last season, primarily as a defensive midfielder. The 6ft 3in tall Moroccan international has been transformed into a centre-half this campaign, a position where he has played only a handful of times in his top-flight career.
Saiss has played 25 times as a centre-back in all competitions this season. The French-born Moroccan international has exceeded his expectations to the point that Wolves barely played Real Madrid’s Jesus Vallejo after bringing him on loan.
Ryan Bennett was also allowed to leave the club out on loan, which just shows the trust in Saiss considering that the Englishman played 40 times in all competitions last season.
Against Tottenham in the Premier League last weekend, Saiss showed how comfortable he is in his new position. The 29-year-old made eight clearances, blocked two shots, completed three interceptions and won 13 of his 19 duels to help his beat Jose Mourinho’s men. (SofaScore)
Santo deserves plenty of credit for all of his work at Wolves so far. His work with Traore, Raul Jimenez and Diogo Jota will get all the headlines but Saiss’s transformation this campaign should be right among the others, if not above them.
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