Wolves have several young talents on their hands at the moment.
The club are really being spoiled by the academy, which has produced some very exciting prospects in recent times.
And that has been refreshing, because the first-team has been struggling for a while now.
Unfortunately, some of the more experienced players have struggled to show consistency at Molineux.
But the youngsters have come in and given great accounts of themselves.
Steve Davis deserves a lot of praise for the way he put his faith in some of the young players during his time as interim manager.
Potentially, Wolves will be thanking him when the likes of Hugo Bueno and Joe Hodge become top players at Wolves, or bring in big transfer fees.
Bueno has been excellent since coming in at left-back. And Hodge is also a brilliant player, and someone new manager Julen Lopetegui immediately complimented when he arrived.
Chem Campbell regularly shines for the U21s, and looks a livewire when he gets cameos for the first-team.
But there is one young player at Wolves that could really enjoyed a steep upward trajectory in 2023.
And that man is Boubacar Traore.
Traore signed for Wolves on transfer deadline day in the summer, joining on loan from FC Metz.
Officials flew out to complete a medical for him, and Wolves have clauses in the deal that will see them pay around £9.5 million for his permanent transfer.
Traore has had to bide his time a little so far, but just before the World Cup he started to really impress for Wolves.
The Malian dynamo has started the last three Premier League matches, and just brings different qualities than some of the others.
He’s athletic, tenacious, gets around the pitch really well, and is a ball winner. Dave Edwards describes him as ‘a completely different athlete’.
These kind of traits have been sorely lacking in Wolves’ midfield, with Ruben Neves and Joao Moutinho more technical players.
Traore has dipped his toe in so far, but 2023 could really see him explode.
Boubacar Traore looks an excellent prospect for Wolves and is the young player to really watch out for in 2023
Traore is the young Wolves player to watch out for in particular, because changes are on the horizon at Molineux.
Next summer, both Neves and Moutinho could leave. There has also already been speculation that Matheus Nunes could depart after just one season.
Wanderers therefore need to have someone ready to take over from them. And Traore has the potential to become a staple of Wolves’ midfield.
He’s still raw right now. But he has only just arrived in English football.
He’s still only 21, and will only get better as time goes on and he gets more comfortable with his surroundings and his grasp of the English language improves.
The fact he’s already knocking on the door to become a regular starter after just a few months is very promising.