Dave Edwards believes new signing Matt Doherty is already on track to displace Nelson Semedo from the Wolves starting XI.
The Republic of Ireland international recently completed a move back to Molineux, after leaving three years ago.
Doherty has signed on a free, after Julen Lopetegui gave the transfer suggestion of sporting director Matt Hobbs the green light.
Doherty was able to fly out to Portugal for Wolves’ second trip there this summer.
He featured in the friendly against FC Porto, and on Saturday he played against Celtic.
And Doherty’s display was encouraging.
Dave Edwards thinks Matt Doherty is already on course to replace Nelson Semedo
Edwards has reflected on the game against Celtic in his latest column for the Express & Star.
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He believes that you can’t read too much into the game, given the amount of training the Wolves squad will have been doing.
Edwards picked out a few players that caught his eye, and his old teammate Doherty was one of those.
He said: “I also thought Matt Doherty was brilliant. He’s unpredictable for defenders and will be such a big asset.
“He got into two or three positions in just 10 minutes, which none of the full-backs probably did all of last season. You can see where he’ll add value. It’s early doors for him getting back to the football club, and Nelson Semedo is a well-established right-back, but if things continue as they are then Doherty has to start.
“He will prove a much better option in attack, in a team that won’t create loads of chances.”
Doherty replaced Semedo against Celtic with around 15 minutes to go.
Semedo finally has a strong push at Wolves
Doherty has definitely looked quite handy so far, even if it is a very small sample size.
Semedo has been established at right-back for a while now at Wolves since his £29 million transfer from Barcelona.
But there is potential for him to lose his place with Doherty now challenging him.
It is exactly what is needed. Semedo can be a great player on his day, but he lacks consistency.
Arguably, he’s been a regular in the side since he came to the club because the challenge from the likes of Jonny Castro Otto and Ki-Jana Hoever just hasn’t been good enough.
The Portugal international knows now that there is someone determined to oust him. Surely, this can only improve him.