Sasa Kalajdzic returned to action for Wolves in a competitive fixture for the first time in 560 days against West Ham on Tuesday.
The Austrian forward has had quite the unlucky career, suffering three separate ACL tears, two while being contracted to Wolves.
His first season at Molineux was interrupted by an ACL tear just 45 minutes into his debut for the club. The following season, he was sent on loan to Eintracht Frankfurt in January, and just a month later, he would suffer the same injury.
Due to the injury he sustained in Germany, he missed the rest of that season, as well as the entirety of the last campaign.
He has now returned, and has dropped a potential hint as to why Wolves may be targeting a player like Tolu Arokodare in the transfer market.
‘Rare combination’ could be Wolves secret weapon this season
With Wolves chasing the game against West Ham on Tuesday night, Vitor Pereira decided to play two strikers at once.
Jorgen Strand Larsen, and Sasa Kalajdzic both entered the pitch as second-half substitutes. The Norwegian was brought on with 73 minutes played, meanwhile the Austrian came on in the 81st minute.
The substitutions worked, and the game was flipped on its head when Strand Larsen struck two goals in two minutes, and Kalajdzic has hinted it could be something seen more often this year.
Speaking to Wolves’ official website, the striker said, ‘I’m happy for the team, I’m happy for Jorgen [Strand Larsen], and I think it’s a nice solution having two tall players up front. It’s something that’s a rare combination nowadays, but I think it’s effective sometimes.’
Having two physically dominant forwards leading the line can be a nightmare for defenders. Not every side in the Premier League has two or three equally capable centre-backs in dealing with aerial duels.
This means that one of Wolves’ strikers could be left in a mismatch against the aerially weaker defender, and makes crossing opportunities highly advantageous.
And this is potentially why the Old Gold are looking towards Tolu Arokodare.
Tolu Arokodare and Jorgen Strand Larsen partnership would be physically imposing
Jeff Shi has told Strand Larsen he is not leaving, so unless there is another twist in the saga, the Norwegian is staying at Molineux.
Additionally, Wolves have identified Tolu Arokodare as a striker target. The Nigerian comes in at 6′ 6″, adding to the physical prowess of Strand Larsen and Sasa Kalajdzic.
Arokodare is extremely proficient in the air, with 25% of his goals throughout his career coming from his head.
| Player | Career goals | Headed goals (%) |
| Tolu Arokodare | 84 | 21 (25%) |
| Jorgen Strand Larsen | 66 | 12 (17%) |
| Sasa Kalajdzic | 44 | 22 (50%) |
This will provide attackers like Jhon Arias and Fer Lopez, as well as wingbacks such as Jackson Tchatchoua and David Moller Wolfe with an excellent target for crosses.
It will be interesting to see how often Vitor Pereira turns to this tactic shown against West Ham, but it could be one that teams struggle to defend against.
Seeing 6′ 6″ Arokodare, and 6′ 4″ Strand Larsen coming up against your centre-backs is likely to cause fear for some fans.