Wolverhampton Wanderers - The Portuguese Project
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TheMaestro
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Chapter 14: Massive Summer Transfer Window
Keeping hold of players, spending wisely and finding a balance. These were all things we needed to do in a crucial transfer window for the squad.
It didn't begin too spectacularly though...
I say that because Real Madrid have announced their intentions to sign Ruben Neves. I was able to turn down Newcastle's bid last year, but the lure of Champions League football at one of the biggest clubs in world football might just pry him away.
We moved swiftly to sign 21-year-old centre-back Goncalo Inacio from Sporting from around 17 million. We needed reinforcements in the heart of our defence and the young Portuguese is exactly that.
He is already accomplished at his young age, and with a bright future ahead of him, I think this is a smart piece of business for us to kick the window off with.
Our next signing was a familiar face, as we bring back Morgan Gibbs-White just a season after he left the club. He's a player I've had my eye on since day one as someone I could bring in, and he comes in to add depth to our midfield.
I think Gibbs-White adds something to our midfield that no one else has - an attack-minded presence. Most of our midfielders are quite defensive or ball playing, and Gibbs-White provides a more forward thinking and pressing option, which will be important if we are playing attacking football.
Confirmation that Danny Namaso and Timothy Fosu-Mensah, loanees from last season, have both returned to their parent clubs. It was never likely that I moved to sign either of them permanently, and whilst they weren't horrible, they weren't particularly impressive either.
With loanees returning, we also had players coming back into the club from loan moves.
The most notable of which is Fabio Silva. Silva is a massive talent who cost Wolves big money a few seasons ago. Now, it hasn't paid dividends just yet, but he's still just 20 years old. He's coming off a decent campaign for Anderlecht and I genuinely believe he has the quality to lead the line for us this season, even if the star rating doesn't show it.
Our first outgoing of the window was winger Daniel Podence. He'd popped up with a few important goals in the second half of last season, but was going into the final year of his deal and didn't want to renew. Therefore, he's off to play in Serie A with Fiorentina for around 11 million.
Nelson Semedo is out of the door. We'd been trying to sell him since January as he looked to force his way out, and, despite our improvements in the second half of last season, he still was desperate to leave. All that means he's shipped ff to Leicester for just over 20 million.
However, then came an unexpected move...
A bid came in for Jose Sa from Porto. Sa had his heart set on the move and although I still considered rejecting it, I eventually decided to accept, having eyed up a replacement transfer. He's been a good servant to the club and was often reliable between the sticks, playing all but one game last season.
We then received our first bid of the window for Ruben Neves, coming in from Arsenal. Arsenal only made the Europa League last season and, moreover, Neves was interested in the move but would not become unsettled if I rejected it. Therefore, whilst it is a big bid, I turned it down, hoping for Neves to stick around and continue to be our key player.
The Sa replacement I'd hinted at earlier is Real Sociedad goalkeeper Alex Remiro. He comes in for 30 million and is a very capable goalkeeper who is arguably an upgrade on Sa. He'll need to perform, though, because we still look thin in the goalkeeping department.
One of the main reasons I targeted Remiro was for his distribution based qualities. He suits our possession-based style and looks more than capable of passing out from the back.
Conor Coady had a torrid time of things on loan at Everton last year, and that meant his value had dipped all the way down to under a million. He's off to Al-Sadd as he simply is not good enough to warrant selection anymore.
I thought that Sasa Kalajdzic would be an important player for us, but he struggled for goals or any type of effective performances. Just one season into his time here and he's gone, joining Valencia for just under 10 million.
To replace him is young striker Rasmus Hojlund from Atalanta. I understand the risk posed by trusting two twenty-year olds, Silva and Hojlund, to be the main strikers this year, but I think that keeping Diego Costa around works from a mentorship perspective. Hopefully, Costa's experience translates to improve and develop both Hojlund and Silva, who both possess immense potential.
Hojlund has the ability to become a terrific player. One of the important things about him is that his finishing is already at a 15. We need a striker with a clinical edge and, although he is still young, he looks like he could be well on his way to becoming that.
Next came our final signings. It was our biggest yet, and perhaps the one that will face the most criticism...
28-year-old midfielder Joao Palhinha joins the club for almost 60 million. This is a massive fee for the 28-year-old, and will likely face slack for just how big it is considering the player concerned, but he completes the midfield trio I'm looking to play of Neves, Nunes and Palhinha.
Sometimes you just have a player who you are set on purchasing, and therefore you're willing to pay a little extra to get him. Time will tell if the money was worth it, but he's an experienced player in his prime years, and should fit right into our midfield.
With our window seemingly done, our focus now turned to our opening game against Liverpool...
Unfortunately, both left-back Rayan Ait-Nouri and centre-back Nathan Collins will miss that fixture and a couple after that as well. Hopefully the recurring injuries that plagued us last season are not as damaging this campaign.
Keeping hold of players, spending wisely and finding a balance. These were all things we needed to do in a crucial transfer window for the squad.
It didn't begin too spectacularly though...
I say that because Real Madrid have announced their intentions to sign Ruben Neves. I was able to turn down Newcastle's bid last year, but the lure of Champions League football at one of the biggest clubs in world football might just pry him away.
We moved swiftly to sign 21-year-old centre-back Goncalo Inacio from Sporting from around 17 million. We needed reinforcements in the heart of our defence and the young Portuguese is exactly that.
He is already accomplished at his young age, and with a bright future ahead of him, I think this is a smart piece of business for us to kick the window off with.
Our next signing was a familiar face, as we bring back Morgan Gibbs-White just a season after he left the club. He's a player I've had my eye on since day one as someone I could bring in, and he comes in to add depth to our midfield.
I think Gibbs-White adds something to our midfield that no one else has - an attack-minded presence. Most of our midfielders are quite defensive or ball playing, and Gibbs-White provides a more forward thinking and pressing option, which will be important if we are playing attacking football.
Confirmation that Danny Namaso and Timothy Fosu-Mensah, loanees from last season, have both returned to their parent clubs. It was never likely that I moved to sign either of them permanently, and whilst they weren't horrible, they weren't particularly impressive either.
With loanees returning, we also had players coming back into the club from loan moves.
The most notable of which is Fabio Silva. Silva is a massive talent who cost Wolves big money a few seasons ago. Now, it hasn't paid dividends just yet, but he's still just 20 years old. He's coming off a decent campaign for Anderlecht and I genuinely believe he has the quality to lead the line for us this season, even if the star rating doesn't show it.
Our first outgoing of the window was winger Daniel Podence. He'd popped up with a few important goals in the second half of last season, but was going into the final year of his deal and didn't want to renew. Therefore, he's off to play in Serie A with Fiorentina for around 11 million.
Nelson Semedo is out of the door. We'd been trying to sell him since January as he looked to force his way out, and, despite our improvements in the second half of last season, he still was desperate to leave. All that means he's shipped ff to Leicester for just over 20 million.
However, then came an unexpected move...
A bid came in for Jose Sa from Porto. Sa had his heart set on the move and although I still considered rejecting it, I eventually decided to accept, having eyed up a replacement transfer. He's been a good servant to the club and was often reliable between the sticks, playing all but one game last season.
We then received our first bid of the window for Ruben Neves, coming in from Arsenal. Arsenal only made the Europa League last season and, moreover, Neves was interested in the move but would not become unsettled if I rejected it. Therefore, whilst it is a big bid, I turned it down, hoping for Neves to stick around and continue to be our key player.
The Sa replacement I'd hinted at earlier is Real Sociedad goalkeeper Alex Remiro. He comes in for 30 million and is a very capable goalkeeper who is arguably an upgrade on Sa. He'll need to perform, though, because we still look thin in the goalkeeping department.
One of the main reasons I targeted Remiro was for his distribution based qualities. He suits our possession-based style and looks more than capable of passing out from the back.
Conor Coady had a torrid time of things on loan at Everton last year, and that meant his value had dipped all the way down to under a million. He's off to Al-Sadd as he simply is not good enough to warrant selection anymore.
I thought that Sasa Kalajdzic would be an important player for us, but he struggled for goals or any type of effective performances. Just one season into his time here and he's gone, joining Valencia for just under 10 million.
To replace him is young striker Rasmus Hojlund from Atalanta. I understand the risk posed by trusting two twenty-year olds, Silva and Hojlund, to be the main strikers this year, but I think that keeping Diego Costa around works from a mentorship perspective. Hopefully, Costa's experience translates to improve and develop both Hojlund and Silva, who both possess immense potential.
Hojlund has the ability to become a terrific player. One of the important things about him is that his finishing is already at a 15. We need a striker with a clinical edge and, although he is still young, he looks like he could be well on his way to becoming that.
Next came our final signings. It was our biggest yet, and perhaps the one that will face the most criticism...
28-year-old midfielder Joao Palhinha joins the club for almost 60 million. This is a massive fee for the 28-year-old, and will likely face slack for just how big it is considering the player concerned, but he completes the midfield trio I'm looking to play of Neves, Nunes and Palhinha.
Sometimes you just have a player who you are set on purchasing, and therefore you're willing to pay a little extra to get him. Time will tell if the money was worth it, but he's an experienced player in his prime years, and should fit right into our midfield.
With our window seemingly done, our focus now turned to our opening game against Liverpool...
Unfortunately, both left-back Rayan Ait-Nouri and centre-back Nathan Collins will miss that fixture and a couple after that as well. Hopefully the recurring injuries that plagued us last season are not as damaging this campaign.
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TheMaestro
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I hope so, and am relying a little on some of the new boys to come in and immediately perform.
TheMaestro
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Yeah, the main aim of the window was to keep the squad in a good position now whilst also building a platform for the future. Hopefully it pays off in the present and the future.Palhina and Neves in the same central midfield
Some great youngsters signed there that won't hit their peak for a couple more seasons, but hopefully they have enough in the locker to impress right away!
Hampus Silverholt
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I also didn't realise the Wolves squad was that poor with the exception of Neves, looks like you've started to replace some of the Championship quality players anyway!
TheMaestro
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Chapter 15: Kicking Off the Second Season
We start our season with a tough fixture against Liverpool, before facing Southampton and then turning our attentions to cup football, going up against Aston Villa.
EPL Matchday 1: Liverpool vs Wolves
Well, our opening game largely went as expected. We barely posed a threat against a vastly superior opponent, who controlled the game throughout and should have had more than 'just' the three goals.
We'd get a better idea of what we are capable of when facing Southampton at home...
EPL Matchday 2: Wolves vs Southampton
So it was extremely concerning that we fell to a 3-1 defeat and were again completely dominated. Considering our usually solid defence, it was poor for us to concede 3 goals in 8 minutes, especially being straight after we took the lead. We were never good enough to warrant anything out of this game, despite going 1-0 up, and our start to the season has been anything but a successful one.
Although it had only been two games and one was against Liverpool, the level of performance was concerning. I decided to switch it up to a tiki-taka based tactic that was a little bit more positive than our previous one. The Carabao Cup gives me a good opportunity to experiment given that it is not a particularly important tournament...
Carabao Cup 3rd Round: Wolves vs Aston Villa
And it brought success, with a rotated squad winning 3-1. We went 1-0 down, but managed to turn it around, the polar opposite of our last match against Southampton. Guedes finally put in a good performance, whilst Chiquinho warranted his selection by getting on the scoresheet.
I have no Player of the Month for August, simply for the reason that no one was consistent enough to warrant it.
League Table
We're last.
We start our season with a tough fixture against Liverpool, before facing Southampton and then turning our attentions to cup football, going up against Aston Villa.
EPL Matchday 1: Liverpool vs Wolves
Well, our opening game largely went as expected. We barely posed a threat against a vastly superior opponent, who controlled the game throughout and should have had more than 'just' the three goals.
We'd get a better idea of what we are capable of when facing Southampton at home...
EPL Matchday 2: Wolves vs Southampton
So it was extremely concerning that we fell to a 3-1 defeat and were again completely dominated. Considering our usually solid defence, it was poor for us to concede 3 goals in 8 minutes, especially being straight after we took the lead. We were never good enough to warrant anything out of this game, despite going 1-0 up, and our start to the season has been anything but a successful one.
Although it had only been two games and one was against Liverpool, the level of performance was concerning. I decided to switch it up to a tiki-taka based tactic that was a little bit more positive than our previous one. The Carabao Cup gives me a good opportunity to experiment given that it is not a particularly important tournament...
Carabao Cup 3rd Round: Wolves vs Aston Villa
And it brought success, with a rotated squad winning 3-1. We went 1-0 down, but managed to turn it around, the polar opposite of our last match against Southampton. Guedes finally put in a good performance, whilst Chiquinho warranted his selection by getting on the scoresheet.
I have no Player of the Month for August, simply for the reason that no one was consistent enough to warrant it.
League Table
We're last.
TheMaestro
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I have to be honest at this point, I'm beginning to lose interest in this save. I was excited to get into Season 2 but it's just become more of the same. We're still performing poorly, no real improvement is present and no matter what tactic I set up with, we seem to struggle regardless. Maybe I made the wrong signings, but I have lost the enjoyment in playing this save because it's just like sitting through the same match over and over again with no change. Yes, we get some wins but they're always difficult games and we are still hovering just above the relegation zone. Maybe I'll come back to it one day, but I'm going to drop down a few divisions for my next save and try to build up a team.
