Comment: Wolves to mount a European charge? Why not?

‘Europe in three’, the Wolves believers began to chime as their team romped towards the Championship title.

For a team then playing in the second tier – and a club that hasn’t played in European competition (apart from the Anglo Italian Cup – ask your dad) since 1981, when they lost in the Uefa Cup first round to PSV Eindhoven, it seemed a tad fanciful.

For opposition supporters it was indicative of the over-confidence and arrogance that had engulfed some Wolves fans – ‘the only place you’re going to in Europe is Cardiff’, they probably said.

Fast forward just a few months, though, and the manner with which Nuno Espirito Santo’s team have embraced Premier League life means the prospect of Wolves ‘doing a Burnley’ is more realistic than many first thought, including this correspondent.

Given there’s only seven games gone and Wolves will have many, many hurdles and pitfalls to overcome, it’s still an outlandish notion. But at the very least it’s a legitimate talking point – can Wolves finish seventh or above?

As Messrs Shi and Dalrymple have stated in the past two weeks, Wolves have their long-term sights set far higher than mere European qualification – they want to win the damn league and then achieve world domination, which may or may not have been followed by an evil cartoon laugh.

To disrupt the hegemony of the top four, the gigantic two, the massive six, etc, is no easy feat, but it is possible, as a quick history lessons shows.

Since 2010/11 what’s commonly known as the ‘big six’ (Manchester City, Manchester United, Liverpool, Chelsea, Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur) have filled those spots on four occasions out of eight, including for the past two seasons.

Those to break the mould have been Everton (sixth in 2013, fifth a year later), Newcastle (fifth in 2012), Southampton (sixth in 2016) and of course Leicester City, who won the title in 2016.

In those eight seasons Everton have made it a ‘big seven’ four times. West Ham finished seventh in 2016 (when Chelsea and Everton were 10th and 11th respectively) and then Burnley managed it last season.

Seventh is often enough for a Europa League spot, with the ‘humongous six’ generally dominating the domestic cup competitions too (or occasionally lifting a European trophy).

Given their impressive start, you wonder if seventh has already become Wolves’ aim for the season, after starting the campaign initially aiming for mid-table stability.

So away from the stats and the history, what are their chances of doing so?

Judging from the early-season sparring, the football they can produce is of as high a standard as anyone outside the top six.

Indeed, at Old Trafford they ‘out-footballed’ Manchester United, who of course produced moments of brilliant and technically-gifted play but generally relied more on their power and physicality.

Defensively they look up to the task. Ryan Bennett, Conor Coady and Willy Boly are an established back three who’ve played together for the best part of a year.

Nuno’s relentless work on shape on the training ground is reflected in the fact you could put a line of string between the three during most minutes of a given match – they know exactly where they are, and the defensive support from the wing backs and two central midfielders make Wolves tough to play through.

Behind them Rui Patricio has started life at Molineux with the hallmarks of a world class goalkeeper, producing two or three saves that took the breath away.

The technical ability of midfield pairing Joao Moutinho and Ruben Neves is as good as the majority of teams in the league, while either side of them Matt Doherty and Jonny Castro Otto have the wing-back roles down to a tee, defending and attacking with gusto and making positive impacts in both boxes.

Up front, Raul Jimenez fits Nuno’s 3-4-3 system perfectly in terms of being a fulcrum and a pivot to link those around him, but he also provides a goal threat having netted twice so far and gone close on a number of other occasions.

Either side of Jimenez is perhaps where Wolves haven’t done themselves justice yet – Helder Costa and Diogo Jota haven’t hit the heights their talent and ability can take them, but with Adama Traore and now Ivan Cavaleiro to replace them from the bench, that hasn’t proved to be a major issue.

With John Ruddy, Ruben Vinagre, Morgan Gibbs-White, Leo Bonatini, Kortney Hause, Romain Saiss and £12million man Leander Dendoncker to fill out the squad, Wolves also possess strength in depth.

Individually the quality is there but it’s within the team collective where Wolves’ real strength lies – Nuno has them superbly well-drilled but there’s a work ethic and a genuine humility in their manner which will keep them grounded.

Weaknesses? Injuries to a couple of key players like Moutinho/Neves, Doherty or Jimenez and you wonder how they’ll cope, but Wolves showed against Southampton at the weekend that when they’re nowhere near their best they can still grind out a result. And more goals (eight in seven so far) are clearly needed, despite the defensive rigidity (three clean sheets in four).

But with an unchanged XI (for seven games in a row) that Wolves fans will be reciting in their sleep having taken them to eighth so far, with £30m worth of new signings (Dendoncker and Traore) still to be integrated into the team, with an attractive style of football, with momentum from last season (which cannot be underestimated), with hunger and motivation from players keen to make a name for themselves, they have plenty going for them.

Their chances created and shots at goal figures are high – as is their 'expected goal' number. And there's more to come yet. If they keep that defensive stability and start to find a regular clinical touch at the other end, they'll be a formidable prospect.

Everton, Leicester, Watford, Bournemouth, Crystal Palace – they'll all fancy their chances of finishing in and around the European places – but hungry Wolves certainly won't fear them.

Europe in three? Why not Europe in one?

Newly-promoted surprise packages

1992/93 – Blackburn Rovers (4th)

Back by Jack Walker's millions, Rovers were ready-made for the top flight and would win the title in 1994/95.

1993/94 – Newcastle United (3rd)

Kevin Keegan's great entertainers were everyone's second favourite team in the mid-1990s.

1994/95 – Nottingham Forest (3rd)

Stan Collymore's goals propelled Forest to third as they bounced back in style two years after relegation under Brian Clough.

1999/2000 – Sunderland (7th)

Kevin Phillips and Niall Quinn formed one of the most effective strike partnerships in the league to send Peter Reid's team to seventh.

2000/01 – Ipswich Town (5th)

George Burley's Ipswich Town were the last newly-promoted team to qualify for Europe via their league position.

2005/06 – Wigan Athletic (10th)

One of the smallest clubs the Premier League has ever seen finished 10th in 2006.

2006/07 – Reading (8th)

Championship record points holders Reading continued their momentum with future Wolves man Kevin Doyle scoring 13 times.

2011/12 – Swansea (11th)

In 2005 they were a League Two side, but Swansea defied the odds to survive comfortably in 2012.

As the above list shows, it's become increasingly rare for newly-promoted clubs to finish in the higher echelons of the Premier League.

Only three promoted teams have managed to finish in the top 10 during this decade – Birmingham City in 2010, West Ham in 2013 and Newcastle United last season.