Wolverhampton Wanderers said goodbye to midfielder Joao Moutinho at the end of last season, as it was confirmed last month that he would depart the Old Gold following the expiration of his contract.
The 36-year-old joined Wolves back in 2018 from AS Monaco and made 212 appearances during his five years at the club, while sporting director Matt Hobbs lavished praise upon the Portuguese star, saying: "Joao’s going to go down as one of the best players to ever pull on the old gold, in my opinion.
"He was an integral part of the team the entire time he was here. Our success over the last four or five years, he’s been instrumental in."
Having made only 24 starts across all competitions last term, it was clear his appearances would have been even more limited during 2023/24, and this is perhaps the correct time to be departing the club.
The task for Julen Lopetegui now is to find an heir for the midfielder – someone who could slot into his role with ease and play a big part at the club over the coming years.
With this in mind, Wolves have been linked with a move for Benfica youngster Joao Neves according to A Bola (via Sport Witness) and although it is claimed he is about to sign a new contract with an enhanced release clause of €100m (£86m), nothing is set in stone yet and Wolves may still have a chance of signing the player.
Could Joao Neves replace Joao Moutinho at Wolves?
The Benfica gem operates in a similar position to that of Moutinho, tending to be deployed in a central midfield position, although both players can play further forward or drop deeper if and when required.
WhoScored states that both Neves and Moutinho offer a similar style of play as they both like to tackle often, displaying their persistent nature in the heart of the midfield, while it also lists passing as a key strength, with the duo being able to control the ball and maintain a high pass success rate.
Indeed, during 2022/23, Neves ranked in the top 4% across Europe’s next eight leagues for passes attempted per 90 (73.65) and Moutinho also ranked highly in this metric across Europe’s big five leagues when being compared to fellow attacking midfielders, ranking in the top 11% for passes attempted per 90 (53.44), showing that Neves could replicate Moutinho’s passing ability should he move to Wolves.
The pair ranked in the top ten across their respective squads last season for tackles, with Moutinho averaging 1.6 tackles per game while Neves averaged 1.5, suggesting that the youngster could perhaps step in and replicate the former Wolves midfielder's tenacious ability in the middle of the pitch.
Hailed as “highly talented” alongside a host of other Benfica starlets last year by Jacek Kulig, Neves is on the way to superstardom and could be a fine heir for Moutinho should a stunning move to Wolves transpire this summer.