Wolverhampton Wanderers' 2-1 win over Fulham in the Premier League saw them maintain their excellent form of 2024.
Despite losing to Newcastle United the weekend prior, the Old Gold have now only lost three games in all competitions this year so far and Gary O’Neil has his team extremely well-drilled.
The former Bournemouth manager has transformed their fortunes from a team who looked like they were being dragged into a relegation fight last season, to a side who are challenging for a top-half finish in the league this term.
Much of this is down to an attacking improvement. Last season, the Molineux side scored just 31 goals in the top flight – the lowest in the entire division – while so far, during 2023/24, they have found the back of the net on 42 occasions, and there are still ten matches to be played.
Hwang Hee-Chan and Matheus Cunha have been O’Neil’s main threats in front of goal, with the duo scoring 11 times each in all competitions and having not one, but two players who are capable of putting matches beyond the opposition have been crucial in their revival.
Another player who has returned to form this term is Pedro Neto, with the Portuguese winger proving to be one of their finest players under O’Neil.
Pedro Neto’s season in numbers for Wolves
Last season, the 23-year-old suffered a serious ankle injury in October which ruled him out of action for five months, meaning he missed the 2022 World Cup.
Across the whole campaign, Neto managed to score once along with grabbing one assist in 21 competitions for the club as they struggled without him.
Goals
2
Assists
9
Key passes per game
2
Big chances created
7
Successful dribbles per game
1.9
Shots on target per game
0.6
Via Sofascore
A solid pre-season ensured he began the current season in the best possible shape. O’Neil was soon rewarded as Neto registered seven assists and a goal in just ten Premier League matches, before suffering a hamstring injury which meant he missed nine league matches.
Since recovering from that setback, the former Lazio gem has scored a further two goals and chipped in with four assists to take his tally to 14 goal contributions – three goals and 11 assists – this season.
It has been a wonderful season for the youngster and his place in Portugal’s Euro 2024 squad must surely be guaranteed.
Not only that, but the winger currently ranks third among his teammates for goals and assists (11) in the top flight, along with ranking second for shots per game (1.8), third for big chances created (7) and first for key passes per game (two), demonstrating how effective he has been in the final third.
Neto, Hwang, and Cunha currently find themselves all injured and could miss several matches. If only there was a striker who the team could currently call on who has outscored Neto this term, yet was sold by Bruno Lage in the summer of 2022. Patrick Cutrone, anyone?
How much Wolves signed Patrick Cutrone for
Following an impressive seventh placed finish in their first full season back in the top flight during the 2018/19 season, Nuno Espírito Santo was on the lookout for players who could vastly improve his squad.
AC Milan striker Patrick Cutrone was earmarked as a main target and Nuno eventually got his man, securing the player for a transfer fee in the region of £23m, a staggering sum.
27 goals in 90 appearances for Milan was an impressive strike rate, especially for a player so young, and it looked like the move could turn out to be an impressive piece of business.
Patrick Cutrone’s statistics at Wolves
The Italian scored just three times for the Old Gold during the first half of the 2019/20 campaign as he struggled to settle in properly at the club.
He was subsequently sent out on loan to Fiorentina, netting five times, before returning to Wolves in January 2021.
Further loan spells at Valencia and Empoli between then and May 2022 meant Cutrone only played 28 matches for the Old Gold during his three years at Molineux, and when FC Como came calling in the summer of 2022, Lage sold him on in order to get the striker off his wage bill.
Since returning to Italy, the centre-forward has enjoyed a much better time of things, and he would have eased the Cunha blow O’Neil has suffered recently.
What Patrick Cutrone is doing now
Last season, the 26-year-old scored nine goals in 35 matches for the Serie B outfit – managed by none other than Cesc Fabregas – but he has already improved on this during the current campaign.
Indeed, Cutrone has hit double figures (ten) for goals, having played just 23 times in the league for Como, and he has outscored Neto this season by seven.
While he failed to display his true talents following his move from Milan, Cutrone appears to have found his feet back in his homeland and there is no doubt he has rediscovered his scoring touch.
Cunha is likely to be out until after the international break at the end of this month, leaving O’Neil short of options to lead the line.
Where Are They Now
Your star player or biggest flop has left the club but what are they doing in the present day? This article is part of Football FanCast's Where Are They Now series.
So far during 2023/24, not only does Cutrone rank first among his teammates for goals and assists in Serie B (12), but the former Wolves' frontman also ranks first for shots per game (3.3) and first for scoring frequency (a goal every 187 minutes), proving his worth in the Italian second tier for Como.
Still only 26, Cutrone has plenty of years left. Did Lage perhaps move him on too swiftly back in 2022? The Old Gold went on to sign Diego Costa and Sasa Kalajdzic following his departure which says they didn't learn from their lessons up top.
Kalajdzic did suffer a terrible injury on his first start for the club, while Costa managed to net just once for the Molineux side in 25 matches.
Would Cutrone have done worse had he been given another full season to fully demonstrate his goal-scoring abilities?
The supporters will never know, but at this moment in time, they could do with a player who is finding the net as often as he is to cover Cunha and Hwang, who will miss the next few matches.
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