When Wolves get back from international break, Vitor Pereira will want Emmanuel Agbadou back to his best.
Since the season began, Emmanuel Agbadou has been one of Wolves’ worst performers. That came as a surprise to everyone after he took the Premier League by storm last season.
That poses a problem for Vitor Pereira, who knows the Ivorian should be starting.
He has bitten the bullet, though, dropping Agbadou in the last two league games. But that’s not something he wants to see continue as the season wears on.
Vitor Pereira isn’t giving up on Agbadou
For the player, getting dropped is never a nice feeling.
That being said, it was necessary, and it might even help him to reset and recalibrate.
On Friday, Agbadou played a starring role for Ivory Coast in their 7-0 thumping of Seychelles. He had a goal and an assist before the break, and was visibly more confident than what we have seen at Molineux recently.
Pereira, speaking to GiveMeSport, thinks the couple of missed games can benefit his star centre-back.
He says: “You know, sometimes to be at his best level again, we need to take the air from the pressure. From there, you can come again. And he will come back to the level.”
Pereira wants to take the pressure off, and he urges the fans to follow suit: “Okay, everyone calm down, keep going with your work, and it will come back.
“He’s a big and very important player for us.”
Agbadou should be encouraged by his manager’s words. The Portuguese isn’t writing him off just yet.
A Krejci/Agbadou pairing sounds lethal
When we discuss Agbadou’s quality, it’s what he showed last season when he was one of the best players in the side.
His size and strength paired with deceptive technical ability made him a joy to watch in the Wolves back line. An even newer centre-back, Ladislav Krejci, has also wowed fans with his quality since joining the club.
If Pereira is to stick with the new system of a back four, those two (at their best) would be a formidable duo. They are completely different profiles of centre-back, but that’s exactly what you want.
Agbadou’s performance for his country hints that he may be turning his form around. If he gets back to his best, Wolves become a much more difficult side to break down. A recipe for success, and more importantly, for points.