We examine how Santigo Bueno’s form should keep him in the team for Brighton v Wolves on Sunday.
Wolves get their Premier League campaign underway for the first time in 2024 on Monday as they head to Brighton.
Gary O’Neil’s side haven’t played in the league since their 3-0 victory over Everton at Molineux. This is because of the winter break that is still underway as well as the FA Cup in which Wolves progressed to the fourth round after a 3-2 win over Brentford.
Form is certainly with the side as they head down south. Wolves are now unbeaten in five games in all competitions and are only three points off Brighton in eighth.
This is even more impressive given the selection issues the manager has had throughout these fixtures. Multiple players have been called up to the AFCON and Asian Cup while injuries have also taken a toll on the first team.
Craig Dawson is one such player who has missed games recently. The centre-back hasn’t been able to start in any of the three matches against Brentford as he recovered from an injury.
As a result, Santiago Bueno has been filling in for the defender and has been fairly impressive. However, now Dawson is back to full fitness, we argue why the Uruguan should keep his place in the team.
Santiago Bueno should start in Brighton v Wolves
The centre-back has barely put a foot wrong since coming into the team. Santiago Bueno has certainly had to wait for his chance.
It wasn’t until the 3-2 loss to Fulham that the summer signing made his first Premier League start. After that, the centre-back had to be patient again until he came in the 4-1 victory over Brentford.
The 25-year-old was impressive, especially in the second half as the visitors had to do a lot of defending to maintain their lead.
Upon returning to the capital in the new year, similar circumstances occurred as Joao Gomes’ red card pushed Wolves back. However, the Uruguan was unfazed by the host’s pressure and barely conceded a chance to the Bees.
Santiago Bueno then saw out another victory over Brentford on Tuesday night as they beat the capital side 3-2.
With Dawson not getting any young, O’Neil should be looking to give Santiago Bueno more opportunities. This is especially true considering the centre-back has barely put a foot wrong in any of the games he has started recently.
Gary O’Neil impressed by Santiago Bueno
These performances haven’t gone unnoticed. O’Neil has been taking note of the centre-back in recent games.
While he may not have had the best debut against Ipswich, the manager believes that he should be proud of the progress that he has made over the past few months.
“His strengths are his understanding and his fantastic positioning,” said boss Gary O’Neil to The Athletic. “He doesn’t get caught square very often, he understands when to drop and when to squeeze, so he’s very intelligent and physically good in the air. So he’s a solid centre-half who took a little while to get used to England and took a little while to get fit.
“We saw in the Ipswich game, it was a bit of a shock with the physicality of it and the speed of it and probably not all because it was a new country and a new league, but partly because he wasn’t up to speed at that point.
“So to go from where he was then to the performances that he’s put in against Brentford in the last couple of weeks is a huge improvement that he should be very proud of. Now if I was him, and I’m sure he is thinking the same, I’d be aiming at a starting berth and nailing down his place for the foreseeable future.”