Wolverhampton Wanderers will be back in action tonight as they travel to the North West to take on Manchester United at Old Trafford in their first fixture of 2022.
Bruno Lage’s side will have a challenge on their hands to break the five-game unbeaten run held by Ralf Rangnick since he took over from Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in November.
Hwang Hee-Chan has been officially confirmed by the club to be out of the side until February, although there has been no precise date given on the winger’s return, it has opened up an opportunity for Barcelona loanee, Francisco Trincao to make his mark on the team and put in a performance to seal a starting position in the team moving forward into the second half of the season.
Unlike his South Korean teammate, Trincao has failed to hit the ground running at Molineux with only one goal scored in the EFL Cup compared to Hwang’s four goals in the Premier League that have reportedly earned him a permanent deal with the Midlands club.
The Wolves manager has weighed in on the slow start for the 22-year-old;
“Sometimes he needs to understand the game better, how we start. That’s the biggest thing he can learn.
“When he starts, the teams are there and they go until the end of the game. Always with a good tempo and a good rhythm.
“That’s the thing. When you come from outside, you need to adapt.”
The £22.5k-per-week gem will now likely be given the opportunity to take the reigns in the forward line to get a good run of form going in Hwang’s absence, and it would be an excellent chance for the youngster if he starts against Manchester United tonight. After all, he could cause problems for the Manchester side, putting in an impressive performance for the team and the manager.
If he starts, the Portuguese has the ability to get Molineux rocking and the following review from former Braga academy coach Jose Carvalho Araujo explains why:
“He is not so fast or intense but I think he has a little more magic,” Araujo began.
“He was an amazing kid, very skinny. Physically, he was very poor but with the ball he was magic, doing tricks, so skilful.”
Daniel Podence also competes with the Barca loanee for a position on left-wing, and like Hwang, has been more effective in his delivery going forward this season with the 26-year-old scoring two goals and bagging two assists this season. This competition adds even more pressure to Trincao to seize every opportunity given to him by Lage.
Wolves dropped into ninth in the Premier League after Brighton beat Everton 3-2 on Sunday afternoon, but if they could cause an upset at Old Trafford by taking all three points out of their difficult clash, they could steal back 8th and close in on Manchester United in 7th.
In other news: Lage could sign Lewis O’Brien…
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