Wolves lost 3-2 to Coventry City on Saturday – and after the game, Gary O’Neil admitted Pedro Neto is going to be out for pretty much the rest of the season.
Neto was forced off during the first-half of the game with Fulham recently.
This came after the 24-year-old went off at half-time against Newcastle United the weekend before, having felt tightness in his hamstring.
He pulled up against the Cottagers, and after Wolves’ defeat to Coventry, O’Neil informed supporters that Neto is now facing a battle to play again this season.
It is a huge blow for Wanderers as the club seek to secure European football.
Another injury for Neto is also frustrating in terms of what it could mean for a potential sale this summer – and journalist Alex Crook has suggested the player’s injury record could cost them money…
Alex Crook suggests Pedro Neto injury record will be a key factor for interested clubs this summer
It is widely expected that Neto will leave Wolves this summer.
Although the club will not be under pressure to make player sales as they were last summer, Fosun want the club to be self-sustaining.
Sporting director Matt Hobbs has also suggested that selling one player this summer for big money would be better than selling two of three for smaller fees.
So fans are expecting Neto – hailed as ‘outstanding’ by Molineux legend John Richards earlier this season – to be the man who goes, but his injury record is going to be something sporting directors of other clubs will look at.
Journalist Alex Crooks was speaking about Neto on talkSPORT’s Premier League All Access podcast and in his eyes, the Portuguese star’s injuries will be a factor for other clubs this summer.
He said: “I do wonder if his injury record is going to put off teams from paying the type of money that Wolves are going to ask for this summer. We’re talking about £60 million.
“He’s missed an awful lot of football. I think if I was a sporting director, I would be a little bit dubious about spending on a player who you can’t rely upon to stay fit.”
Neto injury record will surely cost Wolves
There’s a good chance Neto will still be sold for a very high fee this summer, but undoubtedly his injury record will be a factor in negotiations Wolves hold with any club.
As Crook says, Neto has missed a lot of football over the last few years.
He sustained that fractured patella in April 2021, causing him to miss out on Portugal’s squad for the European Championships.
He then sustained ankle ligament damage in October 2022 and this season he has suffered two serious hamstring injuries.
Surely, his injury record is going to cost Wolves at least a few million pounds they might otherwise have been able to demand.