Last Saturday saw Wolves gain a fantastic point against Manchester City at home in a 1-1 draw. The result was a surprise to many, but if you checked back to the Carabao cup last season you would see that Wolves held Man City at the Etihad to a 0-0 draw with a weakened team. So, Nuno clearly knows how to get a result against Pep’s star-studded side. After last week’s unlucky and disappointing defeat to Leicester City it was great to see us show our quality and show why we was expected to do well this season.
Willy Boly back to his best
The Frenchman had a shaky start to the season as he seemed to be sloppy in possession against Everton, but against City my goodness he was truly back to his best. The colossal centre-back scored his first goal of the season albeit with his hand, but like I said in my preview he is always going to be a threat from set pieces. His defensive display is what stood out the most though, he seemed to be everywhere and was a concrete wall to the City attack. He produced some fantastic blocks to deny Sergio Aguero more than once and made some crucial interceptions. His cool and calm persona was back too and his passing out from the back was slick and classy. With Wolves fixtures about to look very decent on paper with games against West Ham, Burnley, and Southampton all to come in September. I think Boly could be a very shrewd acquisition to your side at just 4.5M.
Joao Moutinho
Much is made about the quality and rightly so of Ruben Neves but against City it was his partner who shined just that little bit brighter. Moutinho was a known quality when he arrived this summer thanks to excursions in European football and for Portugal, but after watching him now for a few weeks you really begin to see how good he is. For a 31-year-old he gets through a lot of work covering the pitch, winning the ball back and then demanding it off his team-mates. He very efficiently knits everything together and is a leader in what is quite a young side. Moutinho picked up his first assist of the season after crossing brilliantly from a corner. He is now it seems Wolves main corner taker which increases his appeal on Fantasy Football. He is playing more further forward than Neves is too which increases his chances of picking up goals and assists in open play. A good example of this was his volley against Leicester which unluckily hit the post. He is however valued at 5.5M which is more expensive than Neves at 5.1M who is more favoured due to his free-kick ability, but like I said earlier he may have more chance of picking up assists more consistently.
Raul Jimenez will score goals with the good fixture run on the horizon
The pacey and powerful Mexican forward has scored one goal so far this season and has been incredibly unlucky to not add to his tally. Against Leicester he saw one of his shots hit the post and rebound back to Schmeichel, had a goal chalked off against Man City for being marginally offside, and a chance which on another day could have put Wolves two up against the reigning champions. Jimenez is showing all the signs of being a fantastic budget striker at just 5.5M, like I mentioned before Wolves fixtures are now turning on paper easier so logically I can see Jimenez getting a good return of points if he stays fit. His combination of pace, power and aerial threat means he can score all sorts of goals, he is also developing good combination play with our other attacking players. If you want a budget striker who is a threat and guaranteed to start, then look no further than Jimenez.
Adama Traore could become an FPL favourite
Traore became Wolves record transfer this Summer when he joined from Middlesbrough for 18M and caused a lot of excitement with fans. The Spaniard is well known for his incredible dribbling ability which last saw him become the top dribbler in European footballer, completing an astonishing 243 successful dribbles. The 22-year-old has played in the Premier League before with Aston Villa and of course Middlesbrough. During his season with Boro in the Premier League he played 1537 minutes and averaged eight dribbles per ninety minutes and this was in a poor side which were often very defensive. Traore is often accused of lacking product and this was true up until last season where he managed to score five goals and get 10 assists. This shows he is maturing and with Nuno nurturing his incredible talent I can see him being a bargain at 5.5M in FPL. He came on against City and instantly got Benjamin Mendy on the backfoot and skipped past him twice like he was a non-league player. He has already grabbed his first assist for Wolves in the Carabao Cup win over Sheffield Wednesday and was unplayable. Once he becomes a guaranteed starter I see no reason as to why he would not be a fantastic prospect given his price. He will attract bonus points due to sheer number of dribbles he will complete earn Wolves many free-kicks which Neves and other players could profit from and he will be able to get Wolves up the pitch quickly on the counter attack. Watch this space for Traore as he could become the bargain of the season.