With Aston Villa out of the way we move on to their close rivals in the Championship for next season. Wolverhampton Wanderers didn’t have the season they would have wanted last season and they will be looking for a better year with some new faces including their new managerNuno Espírito Santo. The Porto coach joined Wanderers at the end of May and has already brought in a few players including fellow Portugese players.
At only twenty, Rúben Neves has gained high-level experience with Porto with around sixty appearances and three goals. The Midfielder has a couple of videos up on YouTube and the first word in my mind when I saw it was sublime. Admittedly these videos rarely show players mistakes, his ability to deliver a perfectly weighted ball from distance onto someone's foot is quite incredible. The few goals I saw were again of the highest quality; two in particular from distance were again perfectly placed and weighted. It's incredible that a player signed for a team that finished in the bottom half of the Championship should cost well over £10 million but it's a signal of intent from the new manager. I very much hope we get to see Neves at some point this weekend.
In the last week Nuno Santo added another young Portuguese face to his squad with the acquisition of Ruben Vinagre. As is the case with most players these days, the defender has a show reel and he looks far too skilful a player to be stuck at the back. At 18, Vinagre may not see as much action as Neves but he certainly looks to have the ability to do well in the Championship.
A more familiar face and one synonymous with Wolves these days is our old boy David Edwards. We could all see Dave's potential as midfielder when he played for Town, a combative midfielder with tenacity and ability. Since playing over 100 games for us over five seasons, Dave has played in the Premiership and played his part in Wales getting to the semi finals of the 2016 European Championships.
Prediction
I'm afraid it's the usual spiel from me when it comes to friendly games, the result is largely meaningless. All we can hope for is a good game with plenty of endevour and a little skill. The weather could be a little changable this weekend so something waterproof may come in handy.
Shrewsbury Town 2-2 Wolverhampton Wanderers
COYB!!!
Marcus Braddock