Wolverhampton Wanderers head into the hectic festive period with ambitions of breaking into the top half of the Premier League table.
With ties against West Ham United, Chelsea, Brentford, and Everton before the end of the year, Gary O’Neil will be aiming to finish 2023 on a high note and send the club into the January transfer window in good shape.
The former Bournemouth manager has led the Old Gold to some big scalps so far this term, securing wins over Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur, but he could perhaps bolster his team with a signing or two in the transfer market.
Wolves transfer news
The 40-year-old tactician will not be resting on his laurels from some wonderful results this term, as the Molineux side have been plagued with inconsistency.
They have dropped points to Sheffield United and Luton Town, while exiting the EFL Cup at the hands of second tier Ipswich Town, and this will spur O’Neil to bring some more quality in over the next few weeks.
According to reports in Spain, the Midlands side are eyeing a potential swoop for left back Marcos Acuña, who is playing for La Liga side Sevilla.
The defender has a contract which expires in 2025 and this indicates that he could be available for a fee that won’t break the bank.
Indeed, as per the report, Sevilla currently value the 32-year-old ace at just €12m (£10.3m) and this is certainly a respectable fee for O’Neil to shell out in order to add some experience to his backline.
There could be a few departures during the January transfer window, with full-back Jonny one of the players who could be moved on ahead of the second half of the season.
Jonny’s future at Wolves is uncertain
The defender was banished from the training ground following an incident which occurred a couple of weeks ago and this meant he wasn’t in the squad for the 2-1 defeat to Arsenal.
O’Neil said: “Jonny won't be in the squad. There was a training ground incident last week that's being dealt with by the club.
“If – or when – he's back available, we'll let everybody know. At this moment in time, he won't be available for the coming games.
“I'd rather not go into details in public. Things happen at training grounds and at football clubs a lot.
“He is not with us at the moment. He’s not training with us. I’m involved with everything but people above me are also dealing with the situation.”
It remains to be seen what exactly has occurred, but it looks as though his future is in jeopardy, and he could well be moved on next month.
The 29-year-old talent joined the Old Gold in the summer of 2018 following their promotion to the Premier League, and he was a regular fixture for Nuno Espírito Santo as the club secured back-to-back top-half finishes.
His playing time has dropped in recent campaigns, however, and he made just 18 league appearances throughout the 2022/23 campaign.
The 2023/24 has seen the Spaniard slip down the pecking order, playing for a grand total of four minutes in the top flight while starting the two EFL Cup matches, and it is clear O’Neil doesn’t particularly have much trust in the left-back.
O’Neil has tended to favour either Rayan Ait-Nouri or Hugo Bueno in a left-wing-back role as he usually deploys a 3-5-2 formation and this has left Jonny with minimal opportunities to showcase his abilities this term.
This means that he is not a key player for the manager, whilst he has also seemingly caused issues behind the scenes based on the aforementioned situation that is currently at hand.
The defender is currently earning £35k-per-week and getting this figure off the wage bill next month could be a priority for the Englishman.
This would make a move for Acuna realistic, and he could add some much-needed experience to the starting XI.
Marcos Acuna’s season in numbers
The Argentinian may be approaching the end of his career, yet he would certainly bring a winning mentality to the Midlands.
The 32-year-old whiz was part of the Argentina squad that won the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, missing just one game during the tournament, and his form over the previous 12 months suggests he is still able to perform at the highest level.
When compared to positional peers in the top five European Leagues and European competitions, Acuna ranks in the top 18% for tackles per 90 (2.51) and for successful take-ons per 90 (1.29) while also ranking in the top 17% for non-penalty goals per 90 (0.1) and while these figures are hardly earth-shattering, they indicate that he is still among Europe’s elite.
This shows that he is a dynamic defender who can be strong in the tackle to win possession back for his side on a regular basis, to go along with his forward-thinking and progressive play on the ball.
Additionally, Acuna ranks in the top ten in the squad for accurate passes and key passes per game for Sevilla in La Liga this season, and he has featured in three Champions League ties, grabbing an assist against PSV.
His performances for Argentina have been lauded in the past, none more so following a 6-1 friendly victory against Ecuador.
His teammate, Lucas Alario, lavished praise on the defender, saying: "Acuna is an animal.
"The routes he took… He was uncatchable.
"He runs all the time, he has a very good delivery, and as a centre-forward, you have to take advantage of those qualities."
While he may be a few years older, it doesn’t stop him working his way up the left flank and with O’Neil playing with two wingbacks at times this season, Acuna could fit into the system seamlessly.
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Indeed, during his whole professional career, the 32-year-old has operated in a more advanced role on the left 155 times, scoring 20 times and grabbing a further 34 assists, certainly proving he could be a valuable asset for the club should he arrive next month.
These statistics show that the World Cup winner has the quality to chip in with goals and assists from the flank, which could provide Wolves and O'Neil with a boost at the top end of the pitch during the second half of this season.
With the future of Jonny uncertain amid the training ground incident, moving him on in order to fund a move for Acuna would make perfect sense.
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If the Old Gold are looking to secure their fourth top half finish in the Premier League since securing promotion in 2018, signing players of Acuna’s experience and ability will be a major boost.
Therefore, they could finally ditch Jonny by securing a deal to sign his replacement for a reported fee of £10.3m in January.
O’Neil must string together some consistency over the next few weeks in order to achieve this goal, but it is well within reach.
