Wolverhampton Wanderers, having started the season well, are approaching the finishing line with a whimper.
Since beating Fulham 2-1 on March 9, Wolves have won just once in the Premier League, slipping outside the top half of the table in the process.
Despite this alarming drop-off, Gary O’Neil has a solid core to his side, which, if kept for next season while adding in another player or two, could challenge properly for that top-half finish in the league.
What is definitely required is some more strength in depth in the midfield, as O’Neil is continually relying on the same players every week.
Did they make a mistake selling Ruben Neves last summer? As his leadership skills and ability could have ensured this late-season dip might never have happened.
How much Wolves sold Ruben Neves for
It was clear that Neves was eyeing a move elsewhere following six seasons at Molineux, where he became one of their key players, helping them secure promotion in 2018 while playing a major part in establishing the club as a regular in the Premier League – scoring 30 goals in 253 games in all competitions.
When an offer of £47m arrived from Saudi Arabia, there was no question the Midlands side were going to accept, especially with the pressure to comply with the financial fair play regulations, but it is clear the club are missing Neves.
For his new team, Al-Hilal, the Portuguese midfielder has scored seven times and grabbed 11 assists. In comparison, no Wolves' midfielder has more than six goal contributions this season, which is slightly worrying.
He remains a big loss to the spine of the team, especially with his continued success elsewhere, but might Wolves have let an even bigger talent slip through the net in recent times? As Paris Saint-Germain midfielder, Vitinha was previously on the books for Wolves.
Goals
6
Assists
1
Key passes per game
0.9
Big chances created
1
Accurate passes per game
48.8
Vitinha's record at Wolves
In September 2020, Wolves managed to secure the signature of the Portuguese starlet on a season-long loan deal from FC Porto, with an option to buy inserted into the deal.
Given his potential, it looked as though the Old Gold could be close to pulling off another masterstroke in a similar vein to Neves, but Vitinha’s time in the Midlands was far from a success.
Across all competitions, he managed to make just 22 appearances for Wolves, scoring once and providing one assist, failing to really showcase his potential under Nuno Espírito Santo.
It wasn’t until he returned to Porto ahead of the 2021/22 campaign that failing to sign him permanently looked like it could prove to be a massive mistake.
Vitinha's record since leaving Wolves
The midfielder began to really showcase his true worth when returning to Porto, making 47 appearances across all competitions while scoring four times and grabbing five assists.
After impressing in Portugal, PSG completed the signing of the highly rated player in the summer of 2022, spending €40m (£34.4m) to lure him to France, and it has proven to be a tremendous bargain given how well he has performed, especially this season.
Under Luis Enrique, PSG have looked like a much better team than in previous years, finally showing some cohesion as a collective unit, rather than relying on three or four-star names.
Vitinha has been the beating heart of the squad which not only claimed the Ligue 1 title for the third successive season but are into the final of the Coupe de France while coming ever so close to making their second Champions League final.
In Europe’s premier club competition, Vitinha has played a starring role. The 24-year-old currently ranks seventh in the entire tournament for big chances created (five), showing how impressive he has been when compared to fellow competitors in creating opportunities for his teammates.
Despite losing 2-0 on aggregate to Borussia Dortmund in the semi-finals, Vitinha has arguably been the star of the show during the knockout stages for the French side.
In the first leg against Barcelona, the youngster finished the game with a 98% pass success rate, made three key passes and lost possession just twice, controlling the game throughout.
Against Dortmund in the first leg, his distribution was incredible. Not only did he succeed with 96% of his passes, but Vitinha was accurate with all 12 long balls he played while winning four of his six ground duels during the clash in what was a sublime display.
The club may have missed out on a second Champions League final, but having a player like Vitinha at the heart of their midfield, it surely won't be long before they actually go on and win the entire thing.
It's no wonder his performances led to high praise, with analyst Ben Mattinson leading the plaudits, saying: “Might not have won the tie but Vitinha showed how he’s been one of the best midfielders in the world this season.
“The close control, IQ, vision, intelligence to dictate the tempo, ball-striking, the time of release, press resistance, mentality, tenacity. So complete.”
There is no doubt that he is going to get better and better in the coming years, especially as it doesn’t look like he has even entered his peak yet.
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Would Vitinha have developed this quickly had he remained at Wolves after his underwhelming loan spell? It's hard to tell, but going back to Porto and gaining a chance to be the main man in their starting XI certainly helped him secure a move to PSG.
Losing Neves was a blow, but it was always likely that he was going to leave sooner rather than later, plus turning down £47m would have been a poor move from O’Neil.
Failing to sign Vitinha on a permanent deal in 2021, however, is swiftly becoming one of the poorest choices the club have made in quite some time, no doubt about that.
