Dave Edwards: There's a lot to like about Wolves' newest recruit

It's a big summer for Wolves and it's always nice when you start hearing about incomings.

placeholder image

Matheus Cunha and Rayan Ait-Nouri have both left and, most likely, Nelson Semedo will be joining them.

So it's nice to see players coming through the door and it looks like Fer Lopez is going to be a Wolves player very, very soon.

It's quite important to note that I don't think with the age he's at and the amount of football he's played that he will be the Cunha replacement and I hope Wolves do more in the market in those number 10 positions to add some experience and quality.

But I do like the addition of Fer Lopez. I've watched a lot of him recently, he's at a good age and has just had his breakthrough season with Celta Vigo.

He played a lot in the second half of the season, which shows how he grew into it, got given a bit of a chance and made a lot of starts towards the end of the season. 

He's a left-footer that will play more off the right and likes to roll in on his left foot. He's a really good size as well, he's quite a tall, imposing figure, but he's got wonderful balance, the way he glides with the ball and he's got a lovely left foot. 

If you look at some of the goals he scores, some of the shots he's taken in his professional career, that could be a real weapon for us. 

You don't quite know how all of that then relates to the Premier League, because it's a very unforgiving league. We've seen some wonderful technicians come into the Wolves team and it's not quite worked for them. 

He definitely has the physicality to play at that level and if he starts the season well and impresses the manager, you never know, he could be the next Pedro Neto.

They're very different players, but when Neto came in no-one really expected him to become such an important player as quickly as he did and hopefully Fer Lopez can be the next one to surprise everyone.

placeholder image

He's definitely got the ability, there's no doubt about that from what I've seen. Playing in La Liga, it's not easy to do that, but the Premier League is a step up.

Sometimes that is enough for people to step up themselves and grasp the opportunity.

There's a lot to like about him. He travels with the ball exceptionally well. He can carry the ball over 30, 40, 50 yards and turn defence into attack.

At left-wing-back, I'm still gutted about Ait-Nouri moving on, but I did always say that Hugo Bueno is a ready-made replacement if he can stay fit and have the durability to play week in, week out in the Premier League.

That's why Wolves may need to do a bit more work in that position, but overall there's a lot to like about Bueno, who is still only young at 22-years-old.

I commentated on his game on Saturday when Spain played against Romania in the under-21s European Championships. He played the full game and he did really well. 

We know he's good on the ball, but in a game where Spain struggled, I actually thought he had a good game.

It's going to be really important to not compare him too much to Ait-Nouri next season. They're very different players, although they play the same position. 

Ait-Nouri is a more creative player, easy on the eye and could drift into some dangerous areas.

That's not Bueno, but where he is strong is he's technically very, very sound.

He can receive the ball in tight areas. He has excellent feet, can manipulate the ball quickly, and is a good passer of it. He's a better one-v-one defender than Ait-Nouri.

I also think he's a better crosser of the ball and he does put in more crosses. He's very quick to shift the ball onto his left foot and put crosses into the box with good quality.

The way Wolves play, that really suits us with the likes of Jorgen Strand Larsen and Marshall Munetsi arriving in the box. That could be a big asset for Wolves next season. 

Bueno has got some fantastic experience this year as well on loan with Feyenoord.

It's been a bit of a stop-start with injuries but he's made nine appearances in the Champions League. He played two full matches against Inter Milan in the quarter-finals. 

It's been a great learning season and hopefully Wolves can reap the rewards of that. 

I would love to see him start the season in that left-wing-back role and hopefully just get stronger, keep himself healthy and go from strength to strength.

Comment Guidelines

Iconic Media encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.

Local news you can trust
Follow us
© 2026 Iconic Media Group Ltd. All rights reserved.Cookie SettingsTerms and ConditionsPrivacy notice