On Monday, many Wolves fans were stunned to read reports that the club are potentially re-signing Matt Doherty.
TEAMtalk reported that the club were closing in on the 31-year-old free agent.
Then, other publications followed saying that Wolves were in advanced talks with the player.
It is quite the scenario.
Wolves sold Doherty to Tottenham Hotspur in the summer of 2020 for just under £15 million. They then brought in Nelson Semedo and Ki-Jana Hoever.
Doherty initially struggled at Spurs. It was a new system for him, having spent so long operating as a wing-back at Molineux.
When Antonio Conte came in, his form picked up because the Italian changed the system to what Doherty knew best from his time at Wolves.
But eventually he faded again, and in January of this year he made a move to Atletico Madrid.
After making just two appearances there and then becoming a free agent, Doherty is seemingly now set to rejoin Wolves… and it might just be a smart move.
Why Wolves re-signing Matt Doherty actually might be a decent move
Plenty of fans are dead against this move.
For many, a move for Doherty is unambitious, and actually just doesn’t make sense.
You can understand why they say that.
Wolves have now moved away from the system Doherty was so successful in, and now line up with a back four.
Julen Lopetegui uses full-backs not wing-backs. The two roles are certainly very different.
And with the manager allowing Conor Coady to depart, there is no suggestion the Spaniard is about to revert to a back three.
That’s what makes this interest in re-signing Doherty fascinating.
The regular criticism of Doherty, much like Coady, is that he can’t play in a back four.
We did see him struggle when he first joined Spurs.
But it would be a surprise if Lopetegui wanted Doherty to come in and be anything other than a back-up to Semedo, who he really likes.
Surely, Doherty could be a decent deputy for Semedo. He would likely be an upgrade on Jonny Castro Otto, anyway.
Wolves’ dressing room is still fairly young, and so the experience Doherty would bring could also be beneficial.
Another reason why Doherty coming back on a free might make sense is the fact that we have actually seen Lopetegui switch to a back three with wing-backs in games.
He never starts with that system. But he’s quite the fan of bringing on another central defender to create a back three when the situation calls for it. He could then throw Doherty on as a fresh pair of legs at right wing-back.
But it could actually be argued that Lopetegui has the other personnel to deploy Doherty at right-back. Mario Lemina and Joao Gomes are both very good at covering ground and are defensive minded.
Perhaps one of those players could be instructed to provide more protection on Doherty’s side.
Furthermore, Doherty may feel as though he has a point to prove. His best form has deserted him for a while now, and he may feel hungry to prove a few people wrong. Maybe he thinks the best chance of doing this is to move back to Wolves.
If Doherty does sign, it will be a risk.
But there are definitely some reasons why it could actually be quite a shrewd by Wanderers.