Steve Bull: Leo Bonatini has stepped up for Wolves

I think you would have struggled to find a Wolves supporter who had heard of the Brazilian when he joined on loan from Al-Hilal back in August, writes Steve Bull.

But what an impact he has had. In next to no time, Bonatini has become a hero.

The big thing which has always impressed me about him is his work-rate. In some instances he reminds me of myself, the way he is prepared to run the channels.

As we have seen during his current scoring streak, he is a mean finisher too. I’ve always liked strikers who put their foot through the ball. With Bonatini, there is never any messing about.

To score in six consecutive games is not an achievement to be sniffed at. The last time it happened was 30 years ago when Micky Holmes – who, let’s remember, was a midfielder and not a striker – found the net in seven straight games.

I’d only recently joined Wolves when Micky went on his scoring streak and if I am being brutally honest, I don’t recall too much about it.

Back then, as players, we never used to talk too much about records. I’d hazard a guess though that the streak will be in the back of Bonatini’s mind when Wolves head to Reading next weekend.

When strikers are in that kind of form, they never want to take a break. Bonatini will be going into every game believing he will score. As well as he has done, it would still be a surprise if Wolves did not try to bring in at least one other striker during the January transfer window.

In such a long season, injuries can never be ruled out and you don’t want to leave anything to chance. Last Friday’s win over Fulham was the perfect way to sign off before the international break. What we saw was a professional team performance and three points achieved with the minimum of fuss.

It was set up as a game between two teams who like to play on the ground but we were by far the better. If anything, I thought the scoreline could have been wider.

This is the last chance for players to catch a breather until we enter the meat of the season. There is no let-up from now until March but Wolves appear to be in very good shape.