This article is part of Football FanCast’s The Chalkboard series, which provides a tactical insight into teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…
Wolverhampton Wanderers will be looking to extend their unbeaten run in the Premier League to a seventh straight game this afternoon, but a local rival stands in their way.
Nuno Santo’s side welcome Aston Villa to Molineux just a couple of weeks after they defeated them in the Carabao Cup, so maybe there is some revenge at stake too.
Michael Kightly reveals the truth about his exit from Wolves in the video below…
Last time out, the west Midlanders needed a second-half goal from Raul Jimenez to clinch a point against Arsenal, but there were encouragements for the future.
None more so than the performance from Ruben Neves, who finally was utilised in an advanced position – and it paid off.
On the Chalkboard
Football FanCast have previously highlighted the need for the Portuguese midfielder to play further forward to draw the best out of him.
He is known for the odd screamer, after all.
In fact, he’s not scored a goal from inside the area (aside from a penalty) in an old gold shirt, per Understat – remarkably at one stage, Neves had more long-range goals than touches inside the penalty box.
Playing next to his fellow countryman Joao Moutinho in a 3-4-3 formation, the 22-year-old was allowed to venture into the final third – 42 of his 45 passes were between the mid and final phases of the pitch.
Neves also managed to fire off four shots at goal, all from considerable range – the most in one game since Burnley at the end of August – which only goes to show that he’s been given a bit more freedom.
This is most emphasised when taking a look at his heatmap from a game like Manchester City, where he was deployed in a very defensive role and this game against Arsenal.
The City victory (left) shows just how deep Neves was, while the Arsenal draw (right) displays him much closer to the opposition’s penalty area with more intensity in their half too.
Wolves may have beaten the reigning champions, but that was down to a moment of brilliance from Adama Traore as he netted a late brace, so that can be discounted in terms of Neves’ own personal performance – he had a far greater impact against the Gunners.
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And that is something that needs to continue going forward if Nuno wants his side to score more goals, which should in theory lead to more victories.
Wolves have just drawn too many matches as they sit 12th in the league despite losing the same amount of games as City and fewer matches than Tottenham Hotspur.
The £45m-valued (Transfermarkt) midfielder holds all the keys to unlocking future success.
