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Wolves fans’ response to Vitinha hat-trick sums everything up perfectly

Vitinha has grown into one of football’s best current midfielders, and it seems strange to say that looking back on his short time at Wolves.

After a loan spell at the Old Gold, the player was not signed permanently, and there would have been few complaints about that at the time.

It was far from the displays he is producing now, but that has not stopped fans from expressing their feelings about the decision, even five seasons on.

Vitinha’s stats for Wolves during his season on loan at Molineux

A graphic to show some of Vitinha's stats from his loan spell at Wolves in 2020/21

He struggled due to a lack of regular football…

Based on his talent, Vitinha would no doubt be one of Wolves’ best players, and he could have been part of a dominant midfield at Molineux if none of their stars in the 2020s were sold.

And his performance against Tottenham in the Champions League proves that to be the case.

Wolves fans react as Vitinha scores Champions League hat-trick

Vitinha celebrates scoring for PSG against Tottenham
Photo by Jean Catuffe/Getty Images

Vitinha is one of the biggest what-ifs in Wolves’ history, and fans have been watching his career skyrocket disheartenedly over the last few years.

The midfielder has gone from being an Old Gold outcast, struggling to get a game for the Premier League side, to a Ballon d’Or contender and Champions League-winning midfielder

Over the last few years, he has consistently proven Wolves wrong for letting him leave, and the last 12 months have been the largest kick in the teeth in that aspect.

The Portuguese midfielder scored a hat-trick against Tottenham on Wednesday night, and his performance against the English side had Wanderers fans talking on X.

One fan said, “Wow, that is a sensational strike from Vitinha! It’s always a horrible feeling, though, as we had the option to buy a world-class midfielder.”

Another stated, “I wonder if Vitinha ever thinks about us?”

Meanwhile, a different supporter said, “Just watching the CL highlights. Wolves have gone from Vitinha not being able to get into our first team to Munetsi being a guaranteed starter within 4 years. What a club.”

And that sentiment was backed by another Old Gold faithful, saying, “Couldn’t get in our team, and now we start Munetsi. What a club.”

Someone replied to that tweet saying, “I don’t think there is a better tweet to sum up the catastrophic decline of our football club in just a few short years.”

Others looked back on the regret of not signing him, as one fan said, “Vitinha must be one of the best players to ever wear a Wolves shirt, right? And we didn’t choose to buy him.”

One supporter felt it was a damning indictment of Fosun, as they stated, “Best midfielder in the world right now couldn’t get into our team; Fosun should sell up for that reason alone.”

Vitinha in action for PSG in the Champions League against Tottenham
Photo by Tnani Badreddine/DeFodi Images/DeFodi via Getty Images

Vitinha is exactly what Wolves are missing now

With his talent and the level he is playing at, even if he blossomed into this world-class star at Molineux, he likely would have outgrown the club just as Matheus Cunha has.

And that is a damning indictment of how the ownership has progressed the club over the last few years. In the current state, it would have been hard to see how the Old Gold kept him for long.

However, his creativity and ability to get the ball further up the pitch are attributes that Wolves are desperately missing right now.

The Wanderers have become a team that lacks any decisiveness in their build-up, and that has left them with just seven Premier League goals scored in 12 games this season.

Now, Vitinha will simply go down as one of the biggest misses for Fosun. That £17 million buy option they had is looking like pennies.