The Big Kick-Off: Four key Wolves players

After enjoying his breakthrough season in 2022/23, Hugo Bueno is now expected to push on and become a real force in this Wolves team. Having been given his chance by Steve Davis and remaining in the team under Julen Lopetegui, left-back is Bueno’s to lose. He has developed into an all-round dependable full-back and the timing of his breakthrough is perfect, with Rayan Ait-Nouri’s struggles and Jonny Castro Otto’s decline. He should now press on with consolidating his position at left-back and improve on last season, with those experiences aiding his development.

Matheus Nunes

Having made a £38million move from Sporting, Matheus Nunes was quite underwhelming in his first season at Wolves – with the odd moments of brilliance few and far between. However, the 24-year-old has bags of talent and could easily have the team built around him. He is a powerful runner, good tackler and gets forward well. The biggest task for Nunes, and Lopetegui, is finding his position. He has always played as a number eight, and had a lot of success, but rarely played there for Wolves. Overall, he is not suited to playing out wide.

Pedro Neto

Unfortunately it has been the same story for Pedro Neto over the last couple years, where injury has plagued his campaign. The same hopes were pinned on him last summer to have a big upcoming season, and those hopes must re-emerge this summer with the talent at his disposal. The key for Neto is staying injury free and building up his confidence, and he should be able to achieve that with Julen Lopetegui at the helm. If everything falls into place for Neto, he has the ability to add numbers to his game and push Wolves on this season. Perhaps he will need a little bit of luck, too.

Matheus Cunha

After a £43million move to Wolves in January, the pressure was on Matheus Cunha to deliver as the club faced a relegation battle. He certainly put in some good performances, scoring two goals, but he finished the season with the sense that there was more to come from the Brazilian. The debate rages on over whether he is a number nine or not, but either way he will need to provide goals and assists to ensure Wolves have a good season. Playing with, or just off, a main striker could be the perfect position for Cunha, who has shown plenty of promise.