Gary O’Neil believes people need to be patient with one player who recently signed for the club.
It has been a really productive past few weeks for Wolves, who have are now right in the thick of their pre-season.
Wanderers have played three matches so far, winning all three. Their next game is against Crystal Palace on Wednesday night.
It will be another chance for O’Neil to take a look at his squad against a Premier League side, and also another opportunity for the manager to observe his three new faces closely.
Jorgen Strand Larsen, Rodrigo Gomes and Pedro Lima have all made good impressions so far.
The manager spoke about all three on the latest E&S podcast, and it is very clear Lima is a young player he really likes. But O’Neil made sure to send one message to the fans over the exciting Brazilian.
Gary O’Neil urges patience over new Wolves signing Pedro Lima, but adds he has ‘unbelievable ability’
Lima has now been at Wolves for a month, after the club poached him from Sport Recife for around £8.5 million ahead of Chelsea.
The Brazilian had been all set to join the Blues, but Wanderers swooped in and sold a project that was more in line with what the youngster wanted.
He has only just turned 18, but the signs are already very promising over Lima, who may well offer the strong push that Nelson Semedo has never really had in his four years at the club.
He supplied a brilliant assist for his fellow new signing Rodrigo Gomes against West Ham United at the weekend, and O’Neil has given some thoughts about the youngster.
He told the E&S podcast: “Maybe some patience needed with Pedro. I know he did some great bits on Saturday – his cross and assist was excellent.
“But he is still very young, and he plays quite young. There is unbelievable ability in there, which is why we were so keen to get him done. But (it’s) a big transition from the style of football that he’s been playing in, to the style of football of the Premier League. (It’s) my job to get him to a place where I think it’s right to start putting him in.
“That might be straight away. But we do need to understand that there’s a lot to do for Pedro to go from playing as a 17-year-old in Brazil to being ready to play right-back against (Gabriel) Martinelli and one of the 15 wingers that Chelsea are going to play up against him. It’s a big step for him, we’re working hard with him and he’s in a good place.”
Lima could be an incredible piece of business by Wolves
It was important for O’Neil to say this about Lima, and it is probably a message that he will be reiterating several times over the next year or two.
Lima is very exciting, but he has only just turned 18 and there will naturally be a lot of work for the club to do with him to get him where they need him to be.
But the early signs have been very good.
Quite possibly, Wolves have a rough diamond on their hands who could be worth a fortune in a few years.
Fans will back that to happen, with O’Neil having an excellent track record already when it comes to the development of players.