Wolverhampton Wanderers secured their first league double over Chelsea since the 1974/75 season with their recent 4-2 win at Stamford Bridge and the Old Gold are eyeing a top-half Premier League finish this term.
The momentum is clearly with Gary O’Neil’s side following their third win of 2024 and if they can maintain this type of form, they could even challenge for the European spots.
Will his decision not to sign another centre-forward during the dying embers of the transfer window come back to haunt O’Neil, however? Especially as they were linked with a few names.
The striker Wolves missed out on
With the Molineux outfit sending Sasa Kalajdzic and Fabio Silva out on loan, while losing Hwang Hee-Chan to international duty, it looked as though they would be signing at least one attacker.
Hugo Ekitiké was a player heavily linked with the club throughout the transfer window, yet no move materialised, and he ended up joining Eintracht Frankfurt on a loan deal with an option to buy – coincidentally, the same club Kalajdzic joined.
It could turn out to be a bad call not making a more concrete move for the youngster, especially considering his talents in front of goal.
With Matheus Cunha shining of late – notably scoring a hat-trick versus Chelsea – Ekitike could have worked well alongside the Brazilian, and it may have been a partnership which spurred Wolves on to potentially grabbing a European spot.
Goals
0.42
0.23
Assists
0.28
0.31
Progressive carries
4.21
1.80
Passes completed
22.9
21.2
Tackles (Mid third)
0.69
0.78
Interceptions
0.60
0.70
Hugo Ekitiké would have been ideal for Matheus Cunha
The 6 foot 2 gem burst onto the scene with Stade Reims during the 2021/22 campaign, scoring ten goals in Ligue 1, and he was even touted for a move to Newcastle United in the January transfer window midway through that season.
“Outstanding talent – huge signing for Newcastle if they get it done, many in France believe he could be the next Mbappe, stated journalist Graeme Bailey amid the interest, and the young talent soon found himself in a team containing the French superstar.
Three goals in 25 league games wasn’t a reflection of his abilities, but he had to contend with playing as a backup to the acclaimed triumvirate of Kylian Mbappe, Lionel Messi and Neymar.
The striker did rank fifth among the squad for goals and assists (five), fourth for shots on target per game (0.5) and fifth for scoring frequency (a goal every 385 minutes), suggesting that he didn’t do too badly among some sublime talents.
If he made the move to Wolves, however, his abilities would have allowed him to work in tandem with Cunha at the head of the club’s attack.
The 21-year-old currently ranks in the top 13% when compared to his positional peers for shot-creating actions per 90 (3.26) and the top 6% for successful take-ons per 90 (2.23), demonstrating that his game goes to a much greater depth than just scoring goals.
With Cunha netting 11 goals and grabbing seven assists this term, it is evident that they are both equally adept at finding the back of the net along with creating chances for others.
This duo could have caused plenty of chaos against defences in the Premier League and O’Neil may go on to rue missing out on the prodigious Frenchman.