Gary O’Neil has made 11 signings since he became the Wolves manager in August 2023 with each player having various levels of success.
The O’Neil era at Wolves has been a journey of contrasting emotions. After an initial fantastic first six months in charge, the Old Gold’s form collapsed in March 2024 and is yet to truly recover.
In the current campaign, Wolves only picked up their first Premier League win of the season last weekend with the side languishing in the relegation zone.
O’Neil’s job is now under threat at Wolves as he looks to steer the ship around. However, many of the signings the Englishman has made have also failed to step up.
As a result, Molineux News has reviewed each one of the 11 signings O’Neil has made since he joined the Old Gold and rated them out of 10. This is based on their price tag, performance and if he has improved the overall side.
Enso Gonzalez – 6/10
O’Neil’s first signing at Wolves, Enso Gonzalez has barely had a chance to showcase his talents since joining the club.
The 19-year-old has struggled with injuries as he looks to break into the Old Gold first team.
Gonzalez did make his Wolves debut at the back end of the 2023/24 campaign. However, an ACL injury in the Olympics has kept Gonzalez out of action this season.
With how young the winger is, it is hard to judge the signing yet as he is far from the final product.
Jean-Ricner Bellegarde – 5/10
Originally, Jean-Ricner Bellegarde looked like an extremely promising signing at Wolves. The Frenchman’s first few performances were exceptional.
However, his influence on the pitch has gradually decreased with consistency a big issue for the 26-year-old.
After losing his place in the starting XI again this season, there is a concern that O’Neil has lost faith in Bellegarde.
There is still clearly a very good player there but time is running out for the Frenchman at Molineux to show this on a consistent basis.
Tommy Doyle – 7/10
One of the better signings on this list, Tommy Doyle rarely puts in a poor display in an Old Gold shirt.
The midfielder had an excellent loan spell at Molineux last season and Doyle was rewarded with a permanent move to Wolves in the summer.
While the midfielder is not a consistent starter, considering the price Wolves paid and his age, it was an excellent deal and Doyle’s ability is only going to grow over time.
Santiago Bueno – 5/10
Perhaps a controversial rating, Santiago Bueno has been at Wolves for over a year now but has struggled to consistently showcase his talents.
More often than not, the Uruguayan international is only brought into the team if there is an injury, as seen this season after Yerson Mosquera did his ACL.
Since then, while the centre-half has no doubt had some good games, he is still part of the worst defence in the Premier League and has certainly contributed to that record.
While Bueno is steadily improving at Wolves, overall he has not matched expectations.
Rodrigo Gomes – 5/10
Rodrigo Gomes was O’Neil’s first signing of the 2024 summer, however, he has struggled for game time since the start of the campaign.
It is unknown why exactly the winger is not in the Wolves manager’s plans after showing such promise in pre-season.
As a result, the signing of the Portuguese youngster does not look promising at present.
Jorgen Strand Larsen – 8/10
Arguably the best signing on this list, Wolves were in desperate need of a proper number nine for years.
Therefore, when Jorgen Strand Larsen came through the door in the summer, there was a lot of pressure on the striker.
However, the Norweigan has delivered despite Wolves’ awful start to the season and has already netted four times.
If he can continue this form, the striker will easily get double figures and will be vital in their fight to stay in the division.
Pedro Lima – 7/10
Pedro Lima joined Wolves with plenty of promise surrounding the young Brazilian.
Despite his limited appearances, the 18-year-old has shown many times that he is capable of playing at a high level and will likely improve massively in the future.
While it is too early to say how good the signing is at the moment, early signings are strongly in Lima’s favour.
Bastien Meupiyou – 6/10
Like a few on this list, it is hard to judge the signing of Bastien Meupiyou. The young French centre-back is believed to have plenty of potential and is no doubt a signing for the future.
However, the Molineux faithful are yet to see the youngster in action. Much of this is due to Meupiyou picking up an injury which prevented him from competing in the Carabao Cup.
Therefore, for now, it is impossible to judge the youngster until we see him in action.
Sam Johnstone – 4/10
A signing Wolves simply didn’t need to make, Sam Johnstone’s transfer to the Old Gold has been truly baffling.
The Englishman was signed on deadline day for £10 million to provide competition for Jose Sa. However, after starting the first few games, Sa has now reclaimed his spot in the net.
With Johnstone proving to be no better than his Portuguese counterpart as well as the duo being the same age, it seems baffling that Wolves forked out a £10 million fee for a player that was unneeded.
Andre – 7/10
The statement signing from the summer, every time Andre has played for Wolves he has looked like one of the best players on the pitch.
The Brazilian international is extremely calm on the ball and can pick out some great passes.
However, he does have the feeling of a good signing at the wrong time. Quite frankly, Wolves simply didn’t need Andre, especially when there is such a limited budget.
Therefore, in recent games, the midfielder hasn’t even started with Mario Lemina and Joao Gomes preferred which has brought down his rating.
Carlos Forbs – 6/10
The final player on this list, Carlos Forbs has rarely been given an opportunity to showcase his talents at Wolves this season. However, when he has played, the winger has looked extremely promising.
Forbs is not afraid to take on a defender and push the team forward to look for a goal.
However, game time has restricted his rating so far making it hard to judge his final rating.