One Wolves man is flying high so far in the Premier League this season with only Kevin De Bruyne beating him in one key statistic.
Under Gary O’Neil this season, Wolves have shone. For a team that was struggling in the depths of a relegation battle this season, there are now hopes that they can reach Europe.
Much of this is down to the management of O’Neil who has seemed to have got the very best out of some of the first-team. As a result, Molineux is witnessing some of the best football they have seen in years.
Mario Lemina and Joao Gomes dominate the midfield of the pitch while Matheus Cunha finally found his shooting boots before his injury, netting almost every week.
However, one man who has managed to get back to his best under O’Neil is Pedro Neto. The winger has struggled since the 2020/21 season when he was Wolves Player of the Season.
Now, he is arguably playing his best football in Old Gold, which is shown in the statistics.
Pedro Neto is outperforming Mohamed Salah and James Maddison
When he has been fit, Neto has been unstoppable for Wolves this season. At the beginning of the campaign, when O’Neil was finding his feet, Neto dragged the club to plenty of points to steer clear of the drop zone.
His season was the put on hold for two months as he went off with an injury. Yet, in the short time he was on the pitch, he managed to sit as the Premier Leauge’s top assister.
Upon his return, a similar trend followed with Neto helping to drag Wolves into the European contention and to a FA Cup quarter-final.
Now, the winger’s creative ability has been recognised. According to WhoScored, only De Bruyne has a better minutes per assist ratio.
Neto currently has 167.3 minutes per assist in the Premier League this season, while the Man City midfielder has 98.6.
Unfortunately, this stat is likely to stay the same for the remainder of the campaign as Neto is unlikely to return from his injury in time. However, this may mean that the Portuguese international could well go above De Bruyne before the end of the season.
Time for Wolves to cash in on Pedro Neto?
It is no secret that Neto is one of Wolves’ best players. The winger can change a game with his skill and creative ability. However, one big problem is his fitness.
Neto has consistently struggled with injuries at Molineux and hasn’t completed a full campaign in years. Despite this, he still manages to pull out some incredible numbers, with this season arguably being his best yet.
As a result, his price tag is the highest it has ever been. Wolves are reportedly demanding around up to £80 million for the winger. If such an offer does come in for anything around this, surely they have to cash in.
While Neto maybe good, anything above £65 million could see three of four new quality players come to Wolves to improve the starting XI.
The team clearly needs additions and with the squad the best it has been in years, cashing out now would be in Wolves’ best interest.