Wolves were beaten 2-0 by Brighton at the weekend, and there was a rare start for Goncalo Guedes.
Vitor Pereira mixed things up a bit, with Jorgen Strand Larsen not fit enough to start the game.
He deployed a front three of Matheus Cunha, Marshall Munetsi and Goncalo Guedes – and unfortunately, the trio were ineffective at Molineux.
Cunha had a poor outing, costing Wolves a goal in the first half when he brought down Mats Wieffer.
Munetsi was criticised by Wolves fans for lacking influence in the game, with many feeling he should not have played a full 90 minutes.
Journalist Liam Keen felt Guedes didn’t take his chance against Brighton, and many others were left disappointed by his display.
But former Old Gold full-back Lee Naylor has come to the Portuguese forward’s defence.
Lee Naylor defends Goncalo Guedes after Brighton defeat
Photo by Jack Thomas - WWFC/Wolves via Getty Images
Photo by Jack Thomas – WWFC/Wolves via Getty Images
It has been a truly fascinating season for Guedes, who cost Wolves £27.5 million (BBC Sport).
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No one expected him to be in the squad this season, having previously spent time away from the club on loan.
The feeling was that he did not want to be at the club, but he was then reintegrated by Gary O’Neil.
Guedes actually did fairly well in the first half of the season as Wolves struggled as a collective, chipping in with goals and assists.
But he’s tailed off in 2025, and Naylor reckons his lack of involvement was a clear reason for his poor performance at the weekend.
He said (via Wolves official): “I can’t express to you how difficult it is when you don’t play every week to come into a side, which has been flying, and just hit the ground running. It’s so difficult. Trust me.
“But Guedes was running around, he was getting in good positions, yet he was off it slightly because of lack of games.
“He doesn’t normally turn down shots and he was getting in one or two good positions to shoot, but that’s not normally him. His touch let him down for a chance in the first half, so in his defence, it’s very hard.”
Guedes exit from Wolves highly likely
Perhaps Guedes was rusty going into Saturday’s game with Brighton.
But Matt Murray also made a good point that the reason for Guedes’ lack of involvement may be down to how he’s been training.
Goncalo Guedes for Wolves in 2024/25
Appearances – 31
Minutes played – 1131
Goals – 5
Assists – 5
Recently, Pereira left Guedes out of Wolves’ squad to face Tottenham Hotspur, and was left out against Manchester United the following weekend.
Guedes didn’t make the most of his chance against Brighton, and it now feels like we won’t see him start again.
Villarreal have previously been linked with Guedes, and it would be a surprise at this point if he was still at Molineux next season.