Wolves are thriving this season thanks to the work of Gary O’Neil with a host of players seeing their performances rise due to the manager’s set-up, one player being Nelson Semedo.
Not many would have believed at the start of the season that Wolves would be in the running for a European spot past the halfway point of the 2023/24 campaign.
That’s the reality for the Old Gold at the moment, thanks to the work of Gary O’Neil, who has redirected the squad’s trajectory.
In less than a season in charge, the Englishman has turned the barren side he inherited from Julen Lopetegui into a free-flowing, high-scoring machine, contrasting to the Spaniard’s lowest-scoring squad from last campaign.
A formational change and a direct approach to play has transformed Wolves, with his work highlighted through the improvement in one player’s statistics.
The stats that show the improvement of Nelson Semedo at Wolves
It’s not been an entirely easy ride for Nelson Semedo since his £36.8m arrival from Barcelona back in 2020.
The right-back has struggled at times under a variation of managers at Wolves however, he finally looks to have found his best form again under O’Neil.
One statistic not only reveals the Portuguese defender as being one of the best in the league in that area, but also highlights just how the manager’s set-up has strengthened his game.
As per FBref, the 30-year-old averages 3.03 progressive carries per 90 in the Premier League this season, which places him in the top 9% of fullbacks in the league in that statistic.
While the average is impressive, the most prominent factor surrounding the statistic is that it is a significant upgrade to his average of just 1.71 last season, highlighting the areas that his game has been boosted under O’Neil.
How Gary O’Neil has allowed Nelson Semedo to flourish
After the victory over Sheffield United on Sunday, the £80k-a-week Portugal international was dubbed “one of the best in the Premier League” by pundit Clinton Morrison.
Morrison pinpointed Semedo’s ability to get forward and cause problems in the final third against the Blades, which reinforces his improvement in releasing the shackles of his defensive duties.
In Lopetegui’s side, the former Barcelona defender was fielded firmly as a right-back in a flat back four which despite allowing him to go forward when necessary, limited the frequency that he could venture upfield.
Under O’Neil, the 30-year-old assumes almost a right-wing-back role, playing ahead of a solid back three which enables the manager to exploit the attacking strengths of both Semedo and Rayan Ait-Nouri.
The boss’ use of his full-backs has given Wolves an added attacking dimension in a tactical shift that has seen Semedo greatly improve this term.