Wolves fans were left stunned by Ruben Neves’ performance for Al Hilal against Real Madrid on Wednesday evening.
Neves is one of five Wolves players at the Club World Cup, with the Portuguese maestro starting in Al Hilal’s first game of the tournament against Real Madrid.
The 28-year-old became known for his incredible passing range and thunderous strikes throughout his time in the Premier League, but after trading Wolves for Saudi Arabia in 2023, the opportunities to watch him became infrequent.
Though after Neves helped Portugal win the Nations League final against Spain, there were no doubts he could still perform at the highest level, and that was the case in the clash with Real.
Wolves fans stunned by Ruben Neves against Real Madrid
Neves got a lot of criticism after leaving the Premier League at the age of 26 to join Al Hilal.
After fielding interest from Spanish giants Barcelona, Neves admitted the move to Saudi Arabia was financially motivated, choosing to set up his family with generational wealth instead of playing in the Champions League.
On Wednesday evening, Neves produced a star-like performance against Real Madrid, as his calmly composed penalty secured Al Hilal a famous draw.
Wolves fans couldn’t get enough of their former midfield metronome when reacting to his performance on X, with one supporter saying: “Neves is still quality. Someone in Europe has to get him out of there.”
“Good to be able to watch Neves live,” someone else admitted while another accurately predicted: “Watching Ruben Neves dominate Real Madrid tonight will be superb.”
“The biggest thing I’ve took from Club World Cup so far is Ruben Neves is still a world class baller & should be at a top level European team!” someone else exclaimed.
“He’s inevitable,” a sixth simply wrote.
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What Neves said about returning to Wolves one day
Wolves fans are desperate for Neves to return one day, having watched him become one of the club’s greatest ever midfielders.
So, when asked about the possibility of coming back in November 2024, supporters will have been pleased that Neves left the door open to a return.
“I don’t like to speak about that because life changes a lot,” he said. “Of course, this is a special home for me and a special home for my family, so Wolves will always be in our minds and there will always be a chance,” he said.
“But I don’t want to create expectations to anyone, because we know how football is, we don’t know what will even happen tomorrow. But for sure, it’s an open door for me. I believe that if I can choose, Wolves will always be one of the options, for sure – but I don’t know what can happen.”