Wolverhampton Wanderers FC. Can Gonçalo Guedes revitalise his career at Wolves?

When Gonçalo Guedes signed from Valencia in August 2022, there was an overwhelming amount of excitement surrounding the winger after months of rumours linking a move to Molineux.

Super agent Jorge Mendes was heavily involved in Wolves’ transfer business at the time and pushed the move over the line.

Mendes had been mostly praised for his transfer business during his involvement at Wolves with the likes of Ruben Neves, Diogo Jota, Pedro Neto, Adama Traore, Nelson Semedo and Rayan Ait-Nouri all joining Wolves due to Mendes.

However some signings such as Guedes’ move has failed to impress as the 27-year-old has put on the old gold shirt just 18 times in two years with two different loan spells in the meantime.

Now lies the dilemma for Wolves whether to keep the £27.5m signing or to cash in; now Gary O’Neil is the boss he may have Guedes in his plans to help revitalise his career in Wolverhampton – if the Portuguese is also on board.

Where has Guedes been?

He made his debut for the West Midlands side in a goalless draw at home against Fulham on 13 August 2022 as a second-half substitute, and later made his full debut away at Tottenham Hotspur in a 1-0 defeat a week later.

Bruno Lage was the head coach at the time and pushed for Guedes to join the club, he stuck with him until January 2023 as he made 18 appearances but only contributed to three goals.

The winger was reportedly unhappy in Wolverhampton and wanted a move back to his home country where he returned to Benfica on 20 January 2023 after leaving the club for Paris Saint Germain in 2017.

He was unimpressive in the backend of the season as he suffered two injuries, both on the same knee, but was rewarded with an extension on his loan deal in summer 2023, keeping him at Benfica for another season.

Guedes started the season with 14 appearances and no goal contributions which resulted in his loan spell being cut short on 19 January 2024.

Just hours after Wolves and Benfica mutually terminated Guedes’ loan, Wolves sent him out again, this time to Spanish side Villarreal until the end of the 2023/24 season.

He impressed out in Spain as he became a regular in the team, playing 19 times and contributing to five goals in a team that ended the season with just two losses in 17 La Liga games since his arrival.

How can Guedes fit into O’Neil’s plans?

Wolves are expected to change to a back four next season with more attacking, high-tempo football which is O’Neil’s choice of style despite the pragmatic change he reverted to last season to sure up the results table.

Guedes plays his best football off the left which is a position Wolves could use depth in as Hwang Hee-Chan is the only ideal player to suit the role.

As we saw last season, Wolves struggled with injuries in their frontline as they lacked sufficient depth – something Guedes can certainly provide.

Despite his strengths, the winger does lack the defensive contributions that O’Neil demands from his players which could cause to be a roadblock in the relationship between the pair, however the head coach has proved his coaching qualities by developing several players already since being at the club.

With everything said, the situation depends on whether Guedes wants to stay in Wolverhampton or whether he would prefer a return to a warmer country.