Since losing Raul Jimenez back in 2023, when the Mexican made his move to Fulham, Wolves have been trying to replace their talisman in an attempt to spike their goalscoring numbers.
Jimenez made 166 appearances for Wolves, scoring 57 goals, providing 23 assists, and totalling 12,749 minutes played for the club.
Last season, Wolves managed to score 50 goals, far better than their previous two years when they only achieved sub-40. If Gary O’Neil’s side want to avoid a relegation battle this season, they are going to need to find a similar number of goals.
How they must wish they signed this man last summer…
Wolves missed out on Viktor Gyokeres
Last summer, Wolves were interested in signing Coventry forward, Viktor Gyokeres, according to Sky Sports, with other Premier League clubs such as West Ham and Crystal Palace also interested.
The Swede had made 50 appearances for Coventry in all competitions during the 2022/23 season, scoring 22 goals and providing 12 assists. But it was Sporting that won the race for Gyokeres in the summer of 2023, securing his services for around €26million (£21.5m).
Since then, the “unplayable” striker – as he was described by former teammate Max Biamou – has been nothing short of incredible. Indeed, the attacker has made 58 appearances for Sporting, scoring 54 goals and providing 18 assists. He’s pretty damn good, let’s put it like that.
One that got away
The transfers that nearly happened but never did. This article is part of Football FanCast's One That Got Away series.
Now, the Sweden international is reportedly valued at close to £103m by the Portuguese club, with Arsenal and Chelsea now interested in the prolific goalscorer.
If Wolves had managed to snap him up last summer, they would have their new talisman, and a good one at that.
Gyokeres compared to Wolves' current striker options
Wolves did make a new signing in the striker department this summer, adding Jorgen Strand Larsen from Celta Vigo on an initial loan deal.
The striker has started all of Wolves’ Premier League games so far, playing 411 minutes, and scoring once.
The other player to make an appearance upfront for Wolves this campaign is the out-of-favour Goncalo Guedes, who did actually score when starting in attack against Brighton in the EFL Cup, losing the game 3-2.
The 27-year-old also scored both goals during a 2-0 win against Burnley – also EFL Cup – when starting as the centre forward.
So, how do they both compare to that man Gyokeres?
Goals
1.57
0.20
1.36
Assists
0.34
0.41
0.00
Progressive Carries
5.43
0.67
N/A
Progressive Passes
1.57
0.67
N/A
Shots Total
5.28
1.43
3.64
Shots on Target
2.36
0.82
1.82
Shot-Creating Actions
6.71
0.89
2.00
Aerials Won
0.71
2.89
N/A
The metrics with N/A for Guedes are due to his score being 0.00 (Carabao Cup games not tracking those particular stats), but all in all, the metrics show quite clearly the level of disparity between Wolves striking options, and Gyokeres.
Larsen does show he has certain traits, such as aerial prowess, winning 2.89 aerials per 90, and linking play to provide assists (0.41 per 90). However, his all round game with progression via carrying and passing, shot volume, and shot-creating actions are very far off the Swedish sensation.
The 24-year-old Larsen, and 27-year-old Guedes could prove to be enough for Wolves this season, but fans may think, if they had signed Gyokeres, how much easier it would have been.
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