Wolves’ return to the Premier League has been a success, but there’s an obvious weakness that is hindering their chances at getting European football next year.
The mighty Wanderers currently sit eighth in the Premier League with only two goals separating them and Leicester from seventh.
Fosun and Nuno Espirito Santo want European football next year, but Wolves will need to finish seventh in the Premier League.
This is a harder task for Wolves than it is for Leicester and Watford.
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Wolves’ biggest weakness hinders their chances at European football
(Photo by Chris Brunskill/Fantasista/Getty Images)
Wolves have been praised by pundits and other Premier League teams for their style of football, but Nuno’s squad is hardly the finished package.
The biggest problem with Wolves’ team is its lack of depth.
When it’s time to make substitutes in a match, Nuno doesn’t have many options.
Morgan Gibbs-White isn’t going to change any match as he’s simply not ready.
He holds onto the ball too long, he only has a crossing accuracy of 31%, and he doesn’t create enough big chances.
Since his breakout performances against Tottenham and Arsenal (at Molineux and the Emirates respectively), the hype surrounding Gibbs-White has disappeared.
Gibbs-White is one of Nuno’s predictable substitutes, along with Ivan Cavaleiro, Adama Traoré, and Hélder Costa.
Cavaleiro is a better option from the bench as he has contributed 3 goals, but Traoré has been Wolves’ biggest disappointment and Costa is too much of a passenger.
Costa only has a shooting accuracy of 28% from a total 25, and his crossing accuracy is an abysmal 6%.
He’s also lost 145 duels as he’s too weak and desperate to be fouled.
Wolves’ biggest weakness is that the substitutes are a massive downgrade from the starting XI. Other than Cavaleiro, none of them make the team any better.
This is especially problematic when Watford is able to bring on players like Gerard Deulofeu.
If Wolves don’t get seventh, then Nuno’s weak bench will be mostly to blame.