Former Wolverhampton Wanderers player Steve Bull has backed defender Leander Dendoncker to step up when he is given the chance.
He also raved over the loan star – who will become a permanent signing next summer for a fee £12 million – labelling him as a player who “obviously” has a lot of talent under his belt, which was evident when he made two appearances in the Carabao Cup this season.
Even though Dendoncker plays for Belgium, boss Nuno Espirito Santo has yet to include him in a Premier League squad – something which Bull has been rather surprised by, considering that the 23-year-old has Champions League experience with Anderlecht.
“[He] has Champions League and Europa League experience from his time with Anderlecht so it is surprising that he has not had any involvement other than the two League Cup games,” he said in the Express and Star.
“But that just speaks volumes about the amount of quality Nuno has at his disposal. He obviously has a lot of talent, given the money Wolves have agreed to pay for him. The 23-year-old defender looked decent in those Cup games against Sheffield Wednesday and Leicester as well.”
OPINION
It is hard not to agree with Bull here – it is rather surprising that he has not been included in a league squad yet. He clearly has the experience to do well at Wolves, but according to Nuno, he is not at the standard required for the first team at the moment. However, this is rather unfair, as he probably has more experience in Europe than anyone in the team. He needs to be given more of a chance in future, as he could make a real difference to this Wolves side. The centre-back would provide that extra bit of quality needed to ensure that Nuno’s side are a success story this season, but unfortunately, that will not be happening any time soon. Fingers crossed that he makes his league debut sooner rather than later, as signing him would prove to be absolutely pointless. Yes, he is only on loan, but come next year, he is set to join on a permanent basis – something which will not be happening if does not start making waves at the Molineux.