The business of football demands profit in order to stay competitive, but one could argue Wolves have taken it too far.
The latest round of exits from Wolves this summer saw talent skimmed off the very top, with Matheus Cunha and Rayan Ait-Nouri the best examples.
But that’s nothing new to Wolves fans.
Recruitment has been commendable in recent years, but too often, players develop into stars only to be moved on to bigger clubs.
Here is a strongest Wolves XI made up of players who have donned the Old Gold in the 2020s.
Goalkeeper and Defence
The best Wolves goalkeeper of the decade so far is a toss-up between two Portuguese stoppers, current number one Jose Sa and Rui Patricio. Patricio gets the edge, simply because he was a constant first choice, while Sa has had to battle with Sam Johnstone at times.
Recently departed Rayan Ait-Nouri and Nelson Semedo get the nod at full-back. Not much of a debate there.
In the middle, there are a few options. Judging by recent performances, Ladislav Krejci could soon make his case, but for now, we’ll go with captain Toti Gomes and West Ham’s Max Kilman, who, despite not reaching the same heights at his new club, was exceptional during his time at Molineux.
Midfield
Moving into the midfield is where it starts to get painful.
Third-place in the Ballon d’Or is not the future Wolves saw for Vitinha when they opted not to keep him at Molineux. He’s a shoo-in.
There is an abundance of midfield options who could join the PSG star. Players like Matheus Nunes and Ruben Neves were fantastic for Wolves, but they just miss out. Andre and Joao Gomes could push their case, but not quite yet.
It’s Morgan Gibbs-White and Joao Moutinho who stand out, for very different reasons. Moutinho, for his contributions as one of Wolves’ most important players this decade, and Gibbs-White, for what he has gone on to become at Nottingham Forest.
Attack
Diogo Jota has had the most success of any Wolves forward since leaving the club, but it feels wrong to include him in a 20s XI, when he left the club at the very beginning of the decade.
Matheus Cunha and Pedro Neto are the obvious choices, having shined for Wolves before earning big money moves within the Premier League.
And for the striker spot, Raul Jimenez gets the nod despite the horror injury that derailed his Wolves career. Before he went down, he was a 17-goal striker and one of the best in the Premier League. He was sold to Fulham and has 19 across the last two seasons. A mistake looking back?
The issue with Wolves and Fosun
The side above would be competing in the top half of the Premier League right now, and would almost certainly be in Europe as well.
It’s a far cry from the squad Vitor Pereira is utilising this season. And the kicker is that they knew the quality these players possessed.
Aside from Vitinha, who had to be included based off what he has done with PSG, these players were at or approaching their best while at Molineux, and still, Wolves have sold all but one.
That one is Toti, who is probably the weak link of this XI.
It’s true. In football, you have to sell. It’s how Wolves have stayed in the Premier League until now. But to have the vast majority of top talent move on so quickly points to an over-selling problem with Fosun.