The Express and Star reporter Nathan Judah has been airing some concerns about Wolverhampton Wanderers midfielder Joao Moutinho.
Over the 2019/20 Premier League season, the Portuguese midfielder was in impressive form for the Old Gold having delivered a 7.01/10 average rating (per WhoScored).
However, in Wolves’ recent 1-0 victory over Olympiacos in the Europa League, the middleman picked up a 6/10 performance rating ‘without standing out’ (per Express and Star).
So, in the latest episode of the E&S Wolves Podcast, Judah aired some concerns about the 33-year-old playmaker.
He said: “I worry a bit about Moutinho. He definitely hasn’t been, apart from a couple of sensational passes in the last two or three games, [he] hasn’t really been there.
“I think that someone like Moutinho, who’s played Champions League football, who’s played Europa League football, who’s a seasoned European veteran, he’s going to have to find a little bit from within him.
“He’s going to be essential, I think [he] could be one of the differentials when they go over to Germany just to calm things down, to show that experience, to show that class and to get the job done.
“We talk about Raul [Jimenez] and [Diogo] Jota and the sexy names, but I feel that he could be the key to make that, almost the assist of the assist.
“When he’s playing well, I think Wolves play well and I think Wolves look a lot more [of an] attractive side to watch when he’s playing. I don’t quite think he’s got there [recently].”
TIF Thoughts…
As can be seen in what Judah had to say, he clearly believes that Moutinho can be the difference for Wolves in the Europa League; however, he has not been showing his best recently.
Do you think Joao Moutinho is key if Wolves are to be successful in the Europa League?
Yes, he's a class player
No, he's not that good
The 33-year-old midfielder, who is valued at £7.2 million (as per Transfermarkt), has featured in 56 matches during the 2019/20 season so far, the first of which was in July of last year (per Transfermarkt), so, perhaps it is unsurprising that Moutinho has been a little bit off the pace recently due to the length of the season.
Hopefully, however, the Portuguese middleman will be able to put in a good performance when the Old Gold face Sevilla on Tuesday night.