OPINION
There won’t have been many Wolverhampton Wanderers supporters anticipating manager Nuno Espirito Santo dropping wing back Jonny for Saturday’s game against Cardiff City.
However, the Wolves boss sprung a surprise with his team selection and it’s safe to say it paid off against the Bluebirds. Jonny’s replacement, 19-year-old Ruben Vinagre, produced a barnstorming performance as his team eased to a 2-0 victory at Molineux.
Diogo Jota and Raul Jimenez, as expected, got the goals, but it was Vinagre who came away from Saturday’s game with the most credit. The youngster, on a reported £30,000-per-week [Source: Spotrac], was absolutely superb against Neil Warnock’s team.
He was involved throughout, bombing forward relentlessly and causing real problems for Cardiff from start to finish. He was so lively and was even charging forward at the end of the game.
The visitors simply couldn’t cope with the teenager. His energy and tenacity was simply too much for Cardiff to deal with. They didn’t have an answer for anything the former Monaco man did.
Jonny has undoubtedly been Nuno’s first choice at left wing back this campaign. However, Vinagre has been breathing down his neck all the time and has impressed whenever he’s been given a chance by his manager.
There’s no doubt that the teenager sent a strong message to Jonny with his performance on Saturday. The Spain international will know that he cannot afford to slip up, because Vinagre will be there straight away to capitalise.