Do Wolverhampton Wanderers need to be active in the final few days of the transfer window to avoid being relegated?
In their Premier League opener on Saturday, Wolves were demolished 4-0 by Manchester City at Molineux, their heaviest defeat under Vítor Pereira.
wolves-vitor-pereira
This is the start of the Old Gold's eighth successive season in the Premier League, their longest stay in the top division since the early-70s, but could it come to an end?
Well, some fresh additions between now and September 1st would certainly help.
Wolves targeting new midfielder
That opening day annihilation at the hands of Man City underlined Wolves' lack of quality, so do they have their eyes set on a highly-rated midfield general?
Well, according to reports in Spain, Wolves are interested in signing Marc Casadó from Barcelona, with Real Betis and Como also in the running.
They add that Barça "would accept" a suitable offer, given their ongoing financial issues, only able to register new signings Joan García and Marcus Rashford on the morning of their La Liga opener against Mallorca last weekend.
As it transpires, the three aforementioned suitors have already submitted an offer to sign the player, believed to be worth around £26m.
Barcelona midfielder Marc Casado
So, could Casadó soon swap Catalonia for the English Midlands?
What Marc Casadó would bring to Wolves
Ever since they secured their return to the Premier League in 2018, high-quality midfielders have been key to Wolves' success.
First, Portuguese duo João Moutinho and Rúben Neves formed the bedrock of Nuno Espírito Santo's side, playing 184 matches for the club together, but the one that got away is unquestionably Vitinha.
20 years old at the time, he spent the 2020/21 season on loan from Porto in the Black Country, making just 22 appearances for the club, starting only five times in the Premier League, his only goal this absolute rocket against non-league Chorley in an FA Cup tie.
Wolves did have a £17m option to buy following the conclusion of his loan, but declined, a decision they surely now regret, considering Vitinha has become one of the very best midfielders in the world, thriving at Paris Saint-Germain.
But, how does Casado compare? Well, joining Barcelona's academy at the age of 13, and is a classic la Masia midfielder; diminutive and possessing exceptional technical ability, much like Vitinha.
After making the odd cameo appearance here or there beforehand, he really established himself as a key figure in Hansi Flick's domestic treble-winning squad last season, as the table below documents.
Marc Casadó statistics 2024/25
Statistics
Minutes
Assists
Completed passes
Pass completion %
Progressive passes
Tackles
Ball recoveries
*minimum 1,000 attempted
All statistics courtesy of FBref.com
Casadó ranked highly for a wide variety of statistics at Barcelona last season, including passing and defensive metrics, despite the fact ten players saw more minutes than he did.
Jacek Kulig of Football Talent Scout labels him a "midfield general", praising his "control and work rate", while Pol Ballús of the Athletic notes that he dominated midfield against 'elite opposition' last season, believing he could be a massive star in the future. It's clear to see why the comparisons to Vitinha exist.
However, could this future be away from Camp Nou, with Casadó having fallen down the Barça midfield pecking order, an unused substitute for Saturday's win at Son Moix, with Fermín López, Frenkie de Jong and Pedro starting, while Gavi came off the bench?
marc-casado-barcelona
Marc Casado celebrates scoring for Barcelona.
Should Casadó end up in Wolverhampton, he'd be joining the strongest area of Wolves' team, with Brazilian duo João Gomes and André starting on the opening weekend, surely one of the best pairings in the bottom half, with Jean-Ricner Bellegarde and Marshall Munetsi deployed further forward.
Nevertheless, the 21-year-old Spain international has the potential to be a world-class operator so, if Wolves are able to take advantage of Barcelona's dire finances, they can't afford to fumble this opportunity, as they did with Vitinha five seasons ago.