KEY CHALLENGES FACING WOLVES AS THEY HEAD TO THE STATESIDE CUP

Wolves this week flew out to the USA, but Gary O’Neil is still faced with more questions than answers regarding the Wolves squad.

Wolves will participate in the inaugural Stateside Cup pre-season tournament in the United States. This tournament marks the first time Wolves have played in the US in 43 years. During the summer of 1981, the Old Gold faced the Jacksonville Tea Men in a postseason fixture, a game they lost 4-1.

The tournament includes fellow Premier League teams West Ham United and Crystal Palace and will take place across three venues in Florida and Maryland. This tournament provides a competitive challenge and a chance for Wolves to engage with their US-based supporter clubs.

Fixtures:

• 27 July 2024: Wolves vs. West Ham United at EverBank Stadium, Jacksonville, Florida, at 7:00 PM ET.

• 31 July 2024: Wolves vs. Crystal Palace at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium, Annapolis, Maryland, at 8:00 PM ET.

• 3 August 2024: West Ham United vs. Crystal Palace at Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, Florida, at 7:00 PM ET.

A lot about the team heading to the other side of the pond has a somewhat inconclusive, incomplete feel to it currently. In every positional line, there are question marks; narratives as yet unwritten.

DEFENSIVE QUESTIONS?

Let’s start in goal with José Sá. There has been speculation for some time that he has been attracting serious interest from the Saudi League. Though he signed an extension last September, he has three years remaining on his current contract, plus the option of an additional year. Should he indeed go, Wolves are in a position to demand a significant fee. I don’t see anything materialising here, but it is not a position that concerns me greatly. With the aforementioned fee Wolves would almost certainly receive, there would be ample suitable replacements attainable, namely the sensational young Guillaume Restes at Toulouse.

Further in the goalkeeping department, Wolves’ number two Dan Bentley has been heavily linked with Arsenal all summer. First, the Gunners came in with a quite frankly insulting £50,000 offer, firmly rejected, but have now come in for a second time at around £300,000. Arsenal seem incredibly keen, so it remains to be seen what materialises there. It may be wise for Wolves to invest in a young upcoming prospect in the mould of Restes who could really put some pressure on Sá and, as the season progresses, provide genuine competition between the sticks—something that has been lacking for quite a while at Wolves.

In defence, the ever-dependable Nélson Semedo’s contract is quickly running down, expiring next summer. If Wolves don’t agree on something soon, he will be free to talk to other clubs in January about the prospect of a free transfer come the summer. Wolves have already activated the two-year option they had on the defender after considerable deliberation last summer. Then, Wolves were not so well-stocked in that area, so it made sense to keep Semedo on despite his hefty wages. Now, however, Wolves are relatively well-stocked with Pedro Lima, Rodrigo Gomes, and Matt Doherty all capable of playing in the right wing-back role. For me, Semedo, coming off the back of a standout season last term, is still the most reliable option at right wing-back, and him sticking around would surely make the transition for the likes of Lima and Rodrigo Gomes a smoother one.

We have seen the potentially detrimental effects of throwing a player in too soon all too often at Wolves, Fabio Silva being the unfortunate prime example. Wolves will be reluctant to allow this to happen again, and what’s more, Semedo sticking around allows Rodrigo Gomes to be utilised more often in advanced positions and Doherty to add depth in the left wing-back position.

Aït-Nouri and Hugo Bueno provide superb options on the left side, but the former, such is his mercurial talent, is subject to constant speculation regarding a move to a ‘big’ club. As I have written about in detail in previous articles, I think it is absolutely imperative that Wolves keep hold of him, with the absolute worst-case scenario being Wolves letting him go late in the market—the problem with which is something I’ll come to later.

At centre-half, the departing Kilman has left Wolves looking a little light, and it is well known that Wolves are clearly targeting a new defender to fill the void he’s left. The club have said they intend on biding their time, and while it seems Nico Elvedi is all lined up, Wolves are instead waiting to see if any better options come their way. The risk with this is that any incoming player would, of course, benefit greatly from some pre-season time with Gary O’Neil and the squad. The longer it is left, the less time there is for this to happen, which could leave Wolves unable to hit the ground running for a third season in succession.

In terms of the current options at centre-back, Craig Dawson, now 34, is ageing, and it remains to be seen if he can return to the formidable form he was in prior to the groin injury that saw him miss the last 12 games of last season. There is a heavy reliance on him performing well, perhaps too heavy for a player who was becoming more of a bit-part player for West Ham prior to joining Wolves. Other options, all of whom are now expected to be a part of the Wolves squad next season, include Santiago Bueno, the ever-versatile Toti Gomes, and the emerging Yerson Mosquera.

MIDFIELD STABILITY

In midfield, there is no major speculation regarding outgoings- at least in regards to those expected to be in and around the first team. And while we all know exactly what the dynamic duo of Mario Lemina and Joao Gomes offer us, along with Tommy Doyle and Boubacar Traore as their more than worthy understudies, I still think we are missing a box-to-box engine of a player like Scott McTominay. It looks like Gary O’Neil is keeping his options open and wants his Wolves side next season to have the ability to play either a 4-3-3, a 4-2-3-1, or a 5-at-the-back hybrid system which we saw a fair bit of last season. Versatile players like Rodrigo Gomes, Toti Gomes, and Rayan Aït-Nouri help to facilitate a range of systems and allow the manager to make tactical changes in-game without necessarily changing personnel. But for this fluid system to be maximised, I think Wolves need to be targeting a more versatile midfielder than their current complement. A midfielder who can step back and join the bank of three in a 4-3-3, and also step up into the number 10 role in a 4-2-3-1, would be absolutely ideal. Not many players fit this mould, but one who stands out is Manchester United’s Scott McTominay. However, despite reported interest from Wolves, I understand any deal is unlikely to happen as it simply doesn’t fit Wolves’ wage structure. Wolves don’t tend to sign established Premier League stars. But there have been players who have joined for big fees, and big wages, and from big clubs in the past—if, and it seems only if, they are absolutely essential pieces of the jigsaw—see Nélson Semedo and his move from Barcelona a few years ago for a prime example of this. But admittedly, they are few and far between. Of the current crop, Bellegarde is the closest Wolves currently have in terms of fitting this profile. He is a player who I don’t see as a wide player at all, rather a player who has been shoehorned into those positions in the past as a result of our lack of squad depth. For me, he provides that squad depth in the attacking midfielder role, as well as in a midfield three. But his abilities in the number 10 position heavily outweigh his ability in the middle of the park. On the other end of the spectrum, Wolves have almost the exact opposite problem in Boubacar Traoré, who is an excellent option as part of a midfield three but isn’t creative enough to play further up in a central attacking midfielder role.

ATTACKING THREAT

With this in mind, it is perhaps the front line where there is most to figure out. I’ll start with Gonçalo Guedes, who is still expected to leave despite featuring in the preseason friendly against Bristol City. He still has three years left on his contract, making him another player who is up there in regards to wages. He is a player Wolves courted for a long time, so it seems such a shameful waste, but he has never settled in Wolverhampton. What I saw in flashes the season before last I liked—he’s a “get your head down and run at them” type of winger with a wicked cross in his locker, not dissimilar to Matt Jarvis. Where things might have gone wrong for him in the past was the fact that the Wolves team he joined lacked a real focal point up top. It was hoped that Raúl Jiménez would return from his horrific head injury to become the player he once was, but this never materialised. With this being the case, I think we saw Guedes grow increasingly frustrated. Some of his deliveries in the first half of last season were terrific—he has an exceptional ability to whip in crosses with extraordinary pace while running at full speed. He is a player who strives to get to the byline. In my eyes, he is an out-and-out winger, similar to Pedro Neto. So, I will be fascinated to see if Gary O’Neil can find a way to reintegrate him into this squad, because with him and Neto hugging the touchlines either side of Cunha pulling the strings, with the added focal point of Strand Larsen, Wolves could have a really formidable attack.

Guedes offers something different to Podence and Hwang, who are more inclined to come inside and pick an intricate pass, or a quick one-two, a path to goal. While Neto and Guedes also check inside (as they play on ‘opposite’ flanks to their prefered foot), they are much more natural wide men, making them much more inclined to maintain the width as well as deliver the ball with quality on a consistent basis—something Strand Larsen will thrive on.

Sarabia is another one who has question marks over his future. He is the club’s highest earner and only has a year left on his contract. He too, like José Sá, has suitors in Saudi Arabia. For me, he is a fantastic option to have in the number 10 role, along with Matheus Cunha and Bellegarde. We saw him utilised on the flanks last year, and while the quality of his delivery cannot be doubted, he severely lacks pace, which I found last season sometimes limited Wolves, especially when it came to changeovers and counterattacks.

Then we have Rodrigo Gomes. Just like his new Wolves teammate Pedro Neto, Gomes came through the youth ranks of Braga. Hopefully, this is a good omen for Wolves, and not a bad one—meaning he is Pedro Neto’s replacement. After all, it is no secret that Neto is highly sought after, with Arsenal seemingly the most interested of his many suitors. It is alleged that he too is keen on the Emirates, but that remains to be seen. We know exactly what Neto offers us should he stick around, and I hope Rodrigo Gomes can complement, not replace, that threat. Gomes himself started out as a left winger but soon found his natural position in the side as a right wing-back as Estoril switched to playing a back five. It will be fascinating to see exactly how Gary O’Neil utilises him, and he is a player I am really excited about this season.

Finally, onto the out-and-out centre-forwards, and as we know, our brand spanking new signing Strand Larsen is set to be the main man. Hwang Hee-chan provides an additional option as he is more than capable of leading the line; however, occasionally, his hold-up play is not as good as it could be, and the ball doesn’t always stick. Cunha could also fulfil the role should Bellegarde or Sarabia (if he stays) step into the number 10 role. However, both Cunha and Hwang will have vital roles to play behind Larsen, and if the likes of Daniel Podence, Gonçalo Guedes, and indeed Pablo Sarabia call time on their Wolves careers as can reasonably be expected this summer, it would leave Wolves a little light in that area. There is Sasa Kalajdzic, but after suffering a third cruciate ligament injury while on loan at Eintracht Frankfurt during the second half of last season, there are question marks over when he will again be fit to play. In addition to this, Sasa was a Bruno Lage signing and featured little in the first half of last season under Gary O’Neil. It is reported that he is not a part of O’Neil’s plans going forward. This begs the question: do we need a true natural centre-forward as backup? I think we do, and this is what disappointed me most when I heard Che Adams of Southampton—who we were close to signing for around £8m last summer—had joined Torino on a free transfer. I think he could have provided the perfect backup option to Strand Larsen and would have been an ideal substitute to bring on against tired defenders. Adams is excellent at leading the press and putting serious pressure on the opposition’s back line. This acts as the first line of defence, because as we know, so many teams build attacks from the back in this day and age. Adams would have been an incredibly useful asset, but news coming out around the transfer suggests that he opted for Torino to guarantee game time. Would he have earned more sitting on a Premier League bench than he will in Italy? Almost certainly. I would never criticise a player who chooses game time over money, so I wish him all the best.

AN OPEN WINDOW

Fans grow frustrated that business is rarely completed before the first game of the season, which can sometimes render a lot of the preparation made during preseason meaningless. After all, if a key player is sold late on and can’t be adequately replaced in time (as we saw with Matheus Nunes last year), managers are forced to adapt in the midst of the games that come thick and fast at the start of the season.

This can then set the tone for the rest of the term. A bad start can mean you spend the season playing catch-up, and it’s a quarter or halfway through the season until a team finally figures out their best system. Only then do results pick up. This has been the pattern for Wolves over the last two seasons, and I just don’t want to see it repeated.

The argument is that deals aren’t there to be done until the closing days, so clubs have little choice but to wait it out.

Let’s remember that this isn’t an issue the big teams face. They are not under the same financial pressures as middle-of-the-road clubs and are blessed with much greater squad depth. They simply wouldn’t let a player go who was integral to their plans for that season, almost irrespective of the figure offered. Don’t believe me? See Mo Salah’s non-move to the Saudi league last summer. These few lucky clubs only ever lose dispensable players, which unfortunately is not a luxury Wolves (and many other clubs in the Premier League) share in. This is another example in a long list in terms of how the structure of the league is skewed in favour of a fortunate few.

With this in mind, many have called for the transfer deadline to coincide with the start of the season. Whether that would really resolve the matter I’m not sure, but I think it would help to some extent.

STATESIDE OBJECTIVES

What I hope comes from this trip to the US is the establishment of a clear system.

We have a chance to test ourselves against Premier League sides to see what works and what doesn’t against opposition we will face again when it really matters in the coming weeks and months.

Ultimately, this uncertainty is something Gary O’Neil could do without in what is his first preseason as a manager, but if he can use these games to establish a clear system, one that really works for us and one that is built around the players whose futures are not up in the air, O’Neil and Wolves will be more than ready to face the ever more difficult challenges of the Premier League once again.

It is fair to say there is much still to sort out between now and the start of the season for Wolves, and it will be interesting to see what transpires across the Atlantic this week.