'Doubts remain' despite deals
- Published
The jury will be out on Wolves' new signings. It needs to be for at least two or three months as they adapt but this is the Premier League and time is of the essence.
Three straight defeats has sparked fears of another struggle especially after selling their two best players.
Matheus Cunha's £62.5m move to Manchester United and Rayan Ait-Nouri's £31m switch to Manchester City at least banked money early and gave Wolves and boss Vitor Pereira time.
A minimum of three recruits were expected in the last couple of weeks of the window and they arrived in defender Jackson Tchatchoua, the versatile Ladislav Krejci and deadline day striker Tolu Arokodare.
Midfielder Fer Lopez and winger Jhon Arias joined earlier but will also take their time to adjust.
Pereira did want another midfielder, free agent Josh Brownhill has been considered, but the club struggled to find the player to fit the profile he wanted so they are a little light, certainly in terms of quality back up for Joao Gomes and Andre.
It is one of the reasons why there has been a planned £26m outlay on the defensive Krejci once his loan from Girona turns permanent as he can also play in midfield.
Yet it is hard to escape the accusations Wolves look weaker. Internally there is a challenge for the new signings to prove themselves but even those who impressed last season - January signing Emmanuel Agbadou - have started the season poorly.
There are concerns about goals and experience. Pereira lost around half the goals of last season - 17 from Cunha - and fears about them not being replaced are real.
Of the five players who played the most minutes Ait-Nouri, Nelson Semedo and Cunha have departed.
Keeping Jorgen Strand Larsen, resisting Newcastle's £50m and £55m bids, was a fine show of strength with the club internally proud and the striker has responded well.
The £20m brought in for Fabio Silva from Borussia Dortmund is also impressive as it recoups a large chunk of the £35m outlay for a striker who flopped.
The wage bill is down and Pereira filled almost all the vacant spots but doubts remain and after their winless Premier League start Wolves must ease those quickly.