Fabio Silva Proved He Can Step Up for Wolves Despite Frustrating Full Premier League Debut

Being handed your full Premier League debut at the tender age of 18 is a pretty daunting prospect, but doing so as a £35m teenager who has to deputise for one of the best forwards in Europe - that's a whole new level.

With Raul Jimenez ruled out for the foreseeable future following his horrific head clash with David Luiz last month, Fabio Silva was afforded the opportunity to show he could spearhead Wolves' attack against local rivals Aston Villa on Saturday.

While the record books will show a fruitless afternoon for the Wolves man, that doesn't even tell half the story of Silva's first start in the league, and there was plenty of reasons to be optimistic about his performance.

With not even a minute on the clock Wolves signalled their intentions to build their play around the youngster, with Daniel Podence swinging a devilish ball into the box which Silva was unable to latch onto thanks to the presence of Matty Cash.

While the move failed to produce the game’s opening goal - with comparisons to Jimenez’s outstanding aerial threat naturally already being drawn - the anticipation of the cross and the bravery shown to throw himself towards the ball gave a significant indication that Silva was up to the task.

But of course, you won’t get very far as a fledgling Premier League strike by being courageous. Perhaps the greatest facet of Jimenez’ game is his ability to do a bit everything.

The Mexican is comfortable with the ball at his feet, can run the channels, he’s a physical presence and he’s mobile, so can an 18-year-old be expected to do all of the above? He can and he did.

The variety of the Portugal Under-18 international’s play was the most impressive part of his performance, dropping deep into midfield to receive the ball with his back to goal before laying it off to a teammate, while also at times playing off the shoulder of the last man and looking to stretch the play.

While talent can get you so far in the professional game, there’s a cuteness and a cunning side to most experienced players’ game which is rarely developed at a young age.

Silva showed he had all of that in his locker, backing into his marker to almost con the referee into awarding a foul and doing likewise to try and disturb the Villa centre-backs if he felt unable to compete for long balls hoisted in his direction.

The youngster’s first big chance came with the last kick of the first half. Having been forced to feed off scraps for the majority of the opening 45 minutes, Silva rose above the Villa backline to connect with a beautiful Joao Moutinho free kick, though his header from 12 yards failed to test Emiliano Martinez as it drifted harmlessly wide of the post.

Silva’s afternoon was summed up with just 20 minutes remaining. Having been slipped in by Daniel Podence, the frontman managed to wrap his foot around the ball only to see his strike agonisingly crash off Martinez’s right-hand post.

It was a microcosm of Silva’s afternoon; clever play and a touch of quality, but ultimately nothing to show for his efforts.

It would have been quite easy for him to shrink and hide having missed the best opportunity of the game, but instead he continued to plug away and battle with Villa's giant centre-backs. He even had the audacity to attempt an outrageous overhead kick late on, only to be thwarted by the brilliant
Martinez.

In truth, the former Benfica man endured a frustrating afternoon and was given very little to work with by those around him. However, there was enough there to prove that Wolves can cope without Jimenez’s presence up front.

Silva isn’t at the Mexican’s level - in fact is some way off - but he’s an energetic, willing runner who is clearly capable of adapting his game to the team’s needs.