Wolverhampton Wanderers fell to a 2-0 defeat against Tottenham Hotspur yesterday, but there was no sign of Daniel Podence in the matchday squad.
Nuno Espirito Santo revealed before the game that the one-time Portugal international is set to undergo surgery on his groin.
Supposedly it is an issue that has been bothering the 25-year-old for some time, which may go some way to explaining his recent form, which has dipped compared to the start of the season.
News of his latest setback was received by some with frustration.
Podence has made just 25 appearances this term, and this groin problem is his fourth issue of the campaign.
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He is a wonderful talent at times, but unfortunately there just hasn’t been any consistency with him since his arrival at the club.
To date he has only managed to complete 90 minutes on six occasions, which is fairly underwhelming given his arrival as a £17 million player in January 2020 (BBC Sport), suggesting a lack of durability.
Podence has work to do
Nuno’s comments (Birmingham Mail) indicate that Podence is a part of his thinking for next season, but arguably he’s got quite a bit of work to do when he returns to prove himself at Molineux.
He needs to be showing more than mere flashes of quality, and must cut out the theatrics, which supporters have been growing tired of in recent weeks.
There is, potentially, a special player in there who fans could really get behind.
He’s the kind of flair player who fans could adore – but at the moment he’s not quite been able to build that relationship with supporters.
Hopefully he can come back with a bang in 2021/22, and avoid becoming a player sold just two years after joining.