Pedro Neto’s latest injury could be ‘the end of the season for him’ with the Wolves star’s hamstring issue surely a £60 million warning sign for Premier League giants Manchester United.
There is one former Old Trafford forward who can probably emphasise with Wolverhampton Wanderers’ stricken number seven more than most.
Michael Owen, his own career littered by injury issues, revealed that a hamstring injury he suffered just after winning the Ballon D’Or as a mere 19-year-old ‘compromised’ the remainder of his time as a professional, the striker’s once-electrifying pace diminishing with every strain and pull (The Guardian).
Now, we are not suggesting that Pedro Neto is about to spend the next decade suffering from the same ‘torture’ that Owen endured.
But with Manchester United in the market for a winger and with the new decision makers at Old Trafford keen to avoid further big-money disasters like Antony or Jadon Sancho, the £60 million fee required to get Wolves thinking about cashing in on Neto feels all the more eye-watering when you consider that, come the end of May, the Portugal international may have missed five months of the 2023/24 season alone.
Manchester United are fans of Wolves winger Pedro Neto
“Pedro, potentially, it’s the end of the season for him,” Wolves boss Gary O’Neill sighs, Neto unavailable for Saturday’s thrilling FA Cup quarter-final collapse at home to Coventry City.
“It’s very similar to the injury he suffered on the other side (of Christmas). There’s a chance he comes back for the last couple (of games), maybe, if it goes really well.”
“(But) it is similar to the last injury, which was around nine weeks, so potentially around that time frame.”
There can be no doubting Neto’s talents. When fully fit, the 24-year-old is one of the most direct and devastating players in the Premier League, scoring a fine solo goal against Man United just before Kobbie Mainoo’s 97 minute masterclass at Molineux.
But the simple fact is that Neto just isn’t ‘fully fit’ often enough. In five years at Wolves, he has only started more than 20 Premier League games in a single campaign.
And, given how much he relies on his jet-fuelled acceleration, a proliferation of hamstring injuries – in particular – will feel extra concerning.
Michael Olise has had injury issues too
Unfortunately for United, one of their other right-wing targets – Crystal Palace’s Red Devils-supporting assist machine Michael Olise – has also endured his fair share of hamstring issues. He’s missed 20 games since the start of last season due to exactly that reason.
United’s pursuit of a new wideman during Ineos’ first summer at the helm, then, is unlikely to be short of potential pitfalls.