O'Neil could drop Gomes by finally unleashing "superb" Wolves ace

Wolves went crashing out of the EFL Cup on Wednesday night, losing 3-2 to Brighton at the Amex. That made it four losses from their opening six competitive matches this season, drawing once, and their only win coming against Championship opposition Burnley in the EFL Cup second round.

Wolves found themselves 2-0 down after 31 minutes, with Gonçalo Guedes scoring their first just before half-time. Brighton then went 3-1 up, before Wolves got a consolation late on, through Tommy Doyle.

Changes could be afoot for Gary O’Neil’s side, as they head to Villa Park on Saturday, looking for their first Premier League win of the season and three points.

Why Joao Gomes could be dropped

With Wolves only averaging 46% possession and an 80.8% pass accuracy, some added technical security could be of help for O’Neil’s side, especially in the midfield department.

Joao Gomes could be the man to make way, with new signing, Andre, completing 100% of his 40 passes in his first start against Newcastle, and Lemina starting in more of a hybrid role, to add duel capabilities.

Gomes made 38 appearances for Wolves last season, scoring two goals, providing one assist, and contributing to five clean sheets in his 2,865 minutes played. He’s still an important player but it could be worth testing a new dynamic in midfield to improve the side’s league form.

The man to replace Joao Gomes

Wolves have the perfect midfielder ready to unleash, with the “superb” Doyle, as labeled by Jacek Kulig. The 22-year-old put in a fantastic performance against Brighton in the EFL Cup a few days ago, winning nine of his 14 duels and completing three out of four dribbles.

Doyle also showed a progressive nature on the ball against Burnley in the second round of the EFL Cup, making three key passes, and completing 9/12 long balls, managing a 90% passing accuracy in the game.

Doyle vs Gomes comparison so far
Stats (per 90 mins)	Doyle	Gomes
Goals	0.40	0.00
Progressive Carries	2.00	1.67
Progressive Passes	16.0	4.44
Shots Total	1.60	0.70
Key Passes	4.00	0.00
Passes into Final Third	16.0	4.72
Passes into Pen Area	4.00	0.28
Tackles	0.00	4.44
Blocks	0.00	1.11
Stats taken from FBref

These metrics are from the start of this season, meaning it is based on very minimal minutes so far with Doyle playing 226 minutes, and Gomes playing 385 minutes. Most of the former’s minutes have come in the EFL Cup so far, whereas the Brazilian has played the majority in the Premier League, so this is also something to consider.

However, these stats still show the different types of player available to O’Neil when selecting his team, with Doyle offering far more progression in midfield via both passing and carrying, whilst Gomes offers that more box to box, duel winning archetype.

With Andre in the middle of the park, and Lemina perhaps staying in a hybrid midfield role, where he can contribute to duel-winning responsibilities, and position himself based on others, the addition of Doyle over Gomes would allow for more passing quality, allowing the likes of Matheus Cunha to stay higher up, and recieve the ball in more dangerous areas to affect the game.

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