Wolves players on-loan: How are they performing?
Wolves currently have seven senior players away on loan at a variety of clubs from the Championship to League Two and even further afield.
Matt Maher and Luke Hatfield caught up with reporters who have watched their progress every week to find how they have all fared so far this season.
As it transpires, there have been some wildly contrasting fortunes.....
Dominic Iorfa
Team: Ipswich, 13 appearances
Info: Andy Warren, Ipswich Star:
It’s been a bit of a mixed start for Dominic Iorfa at Ipswich.
He’s been in and out of the team, though that has more to do with the fact Ipswich are yet to really settle on playing a back four or a back five.
Iorfa has played at both centre-back and right-back.
He’s probably played his best football on the right of a back five and has looked particularly strong going forward.
There have been a number of occasions when he’s managed to scare the opposition left-back, simply because he’s got such long strides and a turn of pace.
Instead, it’s the defensive side of things which has let him down every now and again.
Joe Mason
Team: Burton Albion, six appearances, one goal
Info: Joshua Murray, Burton Mail:
It is difficult to judge how well Mason’s loan deal at the Pirelli Stadium is going – we just haven’t seen enough of him yet.
The Wolves striker certainly didn’t take long to make an impact, scoring with his first touch in his Brewers debut against Sheffield Wednesday – a goal that secured a valuable point against the promotion chasers.
But he has featured in only four league games since that 1-1 draw at the end of August, with a back injury hampering his involvement since the last international break.
Even in the few games he has played so far, Mason has shown he can be a versatile option for Nigel Clough.
Lee Evans
Team: Wigan, 14 appearances, three goals
Info: Paul Kendrick, Wigan Observer:
Evans has done very well at Wigan, the only blot on his copy book being a sending-off at Scunthorpe last month.
Paul Cook was singing his praises after scoring against Crawley in the FA Cup last week and not for the first time he described Evans as an “unbelievable” talent.
He was certainly a player Cook was keen to bring in over the summer and someone he clearly rates very highly.
I’m not sure he was fully fit when he arrived but he hit the ground running and has formed a strong midfield partnership in central midfield.
When he is on his game there are few better midfielders in the division.
Duckens Nazon
Team: Coventry City, 16 appearances, six goals
Info: Andy Turner, Coventry Telegraph:
He’s doing very well, he’s leading scorer and has established himself as a favourite with the fans.
Coventry struggled to score earlier this season, going four games without a goal at one point, but Nazon came off the bench against Luton, the leaders at the time, and scored.
He stood out, going on to score four in five games and has really got the fans excited.
They call him the Duck, whilst his team-mates in training call him the Duke.
Mark Robins wants to keep him now, and interestingly Wolves allowed him to get Cup-tied with Coventry. That is a sign that Wolves could be open to letting Nazon stay.
Ethan Ebanks-Landell
MK Dons, 14 appearances, three goals
Info: Toby Lock, sports editor, MK Citizen:
Ethan Ebanks-Landell has solved one perennial problem at MK Dons by providing the threat from corners the team has lacked for years. He has already scored three goals and the smart money is on him getting a few more before the season is out.
At the other end things have been a bit different. The whole back four have had their problems at one time or another and at one point it felt as though bad luck was following Ethan around.
He came back into the team for the recent FA Cup win at Hyde and performed well.
His signing was seen as quite a coup and he is expected to be an increasingly important player.
Jordan Graham
Fulham, one sub appearance
Info: Ryan O’Donovan, Get West London:
It’s tricky to say anything about Jordan Graham, for the simple fact we have barely seen him since he joined in late August.
One 11 minute substitute appearance at Burton in mid-September, when he looked some way off the pace, is all we have seen of him.
It is far from Graham’s fault. If anything he has perhaps been a victim of circumstance and the manner in which Fulham conducted their summer transfer dealings, with boss Slavisa Jokanovic not having full control over who comes in.
At the moment, it seems Graham is among a number of players the head coach doesn’t fancy and it is unclear when, or if, he will get a chance.
Paul Gladon
Heracles, ten appearances, three goals
Info: Peter McVitie, Dutch football expert Goal.com:
Gladon has been doing okay upon his return this season, but nothing special.
He started well with a goal in the 2-1 win over Ajax and has three in the league now. He is a regular in the starting XI, but he is certainly not the star player for a side sitting in the middle of the table.
It’s possible he could stay, teams like Heracles have a tendency to bring back former players who struggled elsewhere, so Gladon can earn a permanent deal.
If Heracles can’t find a better option then he could end up staying. He clearly doesn’t like Wolves and they don’t seem to be big on him at all.
He’s 25 and I don’t see him going far beyond his current level.
