Wolves left it till the very last minute but they completed the signing of Ajax winger Carlos Forbs on Deadline Day, the exciting talent who will replace Pedro Neto.
Heading into Friday’s deadline, Wolves wanted to address two areas of their squad; a replacement for captain Max Kilman and star winger Pedro Neto.
Gary O’Neil failed to sign a centre-back, as key target Trevoh Chalobah joined Crystal Palace and Nayef Aguerd went to Real Sociedad on loan.
But Wolves fans were delighted to see them land exciting Ajax winger Carlos Forbs on an initial loan deal, with the transfer made permanent for £11.4 million if the 20-year-old plays a minimum of 10 games.
Forbs will add depth to O’Neil’s attack, as he can play on both wings, with Matt Hobbs now outlining what other attributes he’ll bring to the fold.
Matt Hobbs shares what Carlos Forbs will bring to Wolves
Forbs came through the Manchester City academy with Wolves ace Tommy Doyle and flourished in the underage groups before leaving for Ajax last summer.
The Portugal under-21 international was electric in the youth teams, plundering 86 goal involvements in just 72 appearances combined for Man City’s under-18 and under-23 sides.
Speaking to the Wolves official website after moving to Molineux, Hobbs outlined the youngster’s key attributes and it will excite the fans who will anticipate his debut.
“He’s quick and wants to run in behind,” Hobbs said. “He’s technically good, with the education he had, but he’s really direct, good one versus one, will look to stretch teams and with that pace will give us something we probably haven’t got.
“We have it with Rodrigo, but he likes to come inside and play inside the pitch, whereas Carlos really wants to go one versus one and get at defenders.”
Why Forbs is the perfect Pedro Neto replacement
As outlined by Hobbs above, Forbs shares similar attributes to Neto, including his electric pace, direct dribbling and technical ability.
The 2004-born winger is incredibly skilful and much like Rodrigo Gomes, will get fans off their seats with excitement and this is reinforced by some of his attacking metrics.
According to FBref, Forbs has averaged an impressive 5.11 progressive carries per game, 1.94 successful take-ons and 6.13 touches in the attacking penalty box. For comparison, Neto posted 5.78 progressive carries, 2.11 successful take-ons and 4.83 touches in the opponent’s box.
There isn’t too much of a difference between the data for those particular statistics and it shows that, once he’s acclimatized to the Premier League, he could step into Neto’s shoes.
Indeed, Forbs is one for the long-term at Molineux and if he can develop in a similar manner to his Portuguese compatriot, Wolves will have some player on their hands.
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