What Wolves fans can expect from Matheus Cunha

Isn't the Premier League just bonkers?

The January transfer window hasn't even opened yet and the relegation-threatened Wolves, who appointed Europa League winner Julen Lopetegui as manager before the World Cup break, have made the first big splash of the winter.

Brazilian forward Matheus Cunha has joined the club from Atletico Madrid on an initial loan deal, but Wolves have an obligation to buy the 23-year-old outright for a fee that could rise to £35m at the end of the season.

Lopetegui desperately needs attacking reinforcements this winter with Wolves currently reliant on an exfoliating Diego Costa to lead their line. Raul Jimenez and Hwang Hee-chan have been woefully out of sorts for quite some time, while summer arrival Sasa Kalajdzic has barely featured after tearing his ACL in September.

Saviour might be too strong of a word, but Cunha is an enigmatic talent who could spearhead Wolves' resurgence under Lopetegui despite enduring a difficult spell in La Liga. Here's what Wolves supporters can expect from their new signing.

Not a goalscorer

Wolves were a dire watch under Bruno Lage during the first half of the season as they scored just eight times in their opening 15 Premier League encounters.

While the west Midlanders possess an array of crafty playmakers and wingers, they've been bereft of a reliable scorer since Jimenez cracked his skull against Arsenal in November 2020. The Mexican scored 30 Premier League goals during his first two seasons in the top flight, but he scored just six times in 34 appearances last season and he's yet to find the back of the net in 2022/23.

Wolves desperately need a goalscorer but, unfortunately, Cunha isn't that. The Brazilian's most prolific league season arrived in 2020/21 with Hertha Berlin as he scored seven times in 27 Bundesliga appearances.

Cunha scored at a decent rate during his first season at Atletico, averaging a goal every 177 La Liga minutes, but he only bagged six times as his opportunities under Diego Simeone were limited. Either way, the 23-year-old is yet to prove his capacity to score bundles of goals at the highest level, and this should concern Wolves supporters.

A sub-par finisher

Don't worry, there's even more to be worried about in regards to Cunha's competence as a goalscorer!

According to FBRef, Cunha has outperformed his expected goals tally in just one season at a senior level. This came with Hertha in 2019/20 as he scored five Bundesliga goals from an xG of 3.3.

Outside of that, though, the Brazilian has underperformed in front of goal. Although, he did match his xG haul of 6.0 last season.

During his most prolific league season to date, Cunha's xG was 8.4 but he scored just seven, and he underperformed his xG by 2.0 and 2.2 during his two Bundesliga campaigns with RB Leipzig.

So, not only does Cunha struggle to score regularly, but he also can't be relied upon to finish the chances that do come his way.

Versatile forward

While he's often functioned as a number nine at both Leipzig and Atletico, Cunha is capable of operating across the front line while some of the best football he's played in his senior career to date came when playing off target men Krzysztof Piątek and Vedad Ibišević at Hertha.

Lopetegui is expected to play a 4-3-3 at Molineux with Cunha likely operating from the central striker position. However, Wolves are blessed with a bunch of canny, between-the-lines operators who enjoy drifting infield from wide positions. Thus, their attack could look incredibly fluid with Cunha involved.

The Brazilian boasts a rather imposing profile which means he's adept at operating as a lone striker, but he's at his best when he's dropping into deeper zones, turning and running at defences.

Capable of producing magic in possession

There's not a moment that depicts Cunha's capacity to thrill better than his sequence of vintage samba ingenuity against Bayer Leverkusen in April 2019.

The then-Leipzig forward bemused Leverkusen defender Wendell with a stunning pirouette before calmly dinking his effort over the onrushing goalkeeper. It was a goal that wouldn't look out of place in a Ronaldinho compilation.

So, while he might not be a reliable goalscorer, there's no doubt that Cunha is a talent that'll get the Molineux faithful off their feet. He can be incredibly exciting to watch with the ball at his feet, and an argument could be made that the 23-year-old's a more effective playmaker than he is a finisher.

Cunha has an impressive sense of timing in the final third and he combines well with his teammates. The Brazilian possesses the attributes of a seasoned number ten or an inverted winger off the left, and it's from these roles where Cunha could thrive at Wolves.

It's hard to envisage him shining as a lone forward in the Premier League given his sub-par goal record, but he nonetheless remains an X-factor talent who adds greater variance and unpredictability to Wolves' play in the final third. If he wants to best accommodate Cunha, Lopetegui should switch to a 4-2-3-1 and allow the Brazilian to operate between the lines as much as possible.