The news surrounding Pedro Neto and his contract at Wolves could end up having an impact on both Adama Traore and Bruno Lage.
Having suffered a pretty major injury towards the back end of last season, the Portuguese winger, who celebrated his 22nd birthday on Wednesday has slowly been making his way into the first-team picture at the club, making his fourth appearance and first start in their most recent Premier League game.
As a birthday present, and perhaps as a show of faith in how much of an impact they think he can still have at the club, it was announced that he has signed a new deal at Molineux that will tie him down until 2027.
This news could send a bit of a ripple effect through the club, and we break down the two men that it could affect the most:
Adama Traore gone for good?
The 26-year-old Spaniard’s tenure at the club has been in question for some time now. There were reports last summer hinting that clubs might be looking to sign him, but having entered the final 18 months of his deal this past January, despite negotiations reportedly having been ongoing since September, he ultimately left for Barcelona on loan until the end of the season.
He appears to be doing a lot better there than he was in England, having already registered four assists in just seven games, more than he had managed in the previous season and a half at Molineux.
Reports in Spain have suggested that the Catalan outfit want to sign him permanently, and if Wolves make it clear that they don’t need him anymore now that Neto is back in the fold, a sort of ‘one in, one out’ policy considering how long Neto has been out of action, that might make it easier to bring his time at the club to an end if the club believe that he can fill Traore’s spot in the side.
However, Wolves may not get much of a say in keeping Traore if he decides his future lies elsewhere anyway.
Should Wolves sell Traore?
Yes!
No!
Francisco Trincao permanent move put to bed
The winger signed on loan from Barcelona back in the summer and an option to buy was inserted into the deal which meant that Wolves would have to pay £25 million to seal his permanent future.
But, things haven’t exactly panned out for the attacking talent as he’s struggled to come to terms with the Premier League, having failed to produce a goal or an assist in 20 games. He averages just over 30 touches per game and has only ever created one big chance, as well as achieving a rather disappointing dribble success percentage of 54 (as per SofaScore).
And, Nathan Judah has even claimed that a permanent deal doesn’t look likely given his current form.
So, with Pedro Neto now back in action and penning a deal until 2027, perhaps he won’t get too many more chances in the current campaign and the potential need for him beyond this season is disappearing.
TIF Verdict…
So this does seem like a situation in which everyone is a winner. Neto gets his place in the side back that will allow him to hopefully add to the impressive numbers he put up before his injury, Traore moves to a side that are near the top of the table in Spain and challenging for Europe, whilst Fosun can save a big chunk of money, if they weren’t already planning on doing so.
Of course this all counts on the dominoes falling in the right way and it will be interesting to see if that is indeed the case as we move closer and closer to the summer transfer window.
In other news: Journalist drops hugely encouraging claim on Wolves star amid rumours