Emmanuel Agbadou was praised last season for his performances for Wolves, but across pre-season and the first two Premier League games, he has looked a shadow of himself.
Agbadou’s form left Vitor Pereira frustrated in pre-season, and he has carried that into the start of this year’s campaign.
It is a stark difference to last year as the Ivorian was monstrous for Wolves. It has certainly come as a surprise that he has been unable to repeat the displays he showcased in 2024/2025.
However, while Wolves fans weren’t exactly happy with how he performed against Bournemouth, especially with his defending for the goal being suspect, there were a couple of reasons to suggest a quality defender is still present.
Emmanuel Agbadou won every tackle and duel against Bournemouth
After the first half against Bournemouth and going down to 10 men in the second, many would have expected the floodgates to open.
However, Wolves were able to solidify their midfield and defence, thanks in large part to the addition of Andre off the bench. Following the game, Matt Doherty also praised their defensive resilience amid relegation fears.
In central defence, while Agbadou started the game worryingly, there were some stats that provide hope for the defender yet.
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Emmanuel Agbadou didn’t miss a single tackle, and won every duel he competed in against Bournemouth on Saturday.
Stat Total
Tackles (% won) 2/2 (100%)
Ground duels (% won) 2/2 (100%)
Aerial duels (% won) 6/6 (100%)
Fouls committed 0
Emmanuel Agbadou stats via FOTMOB
The stats show that the Ivorian is still, and can be, the duel-winning monster he was for Wolves last season.
It is unclear exactly what has changed, but other parts of Agbadou’s game haven’t been to the same standard the Old Gold have come to expect.
Emmanuel Agbadou contesting a duel for Wolves against Bournemouth
Photo by Mike Hewitt/Getty Images
Emmanuel Agbadou needs to work on passing and positioning
Of course, winning his battles isn’t the only thing Emmanuel Agbadou needs to be doing as a defender. His passing hasn’t been up to scratch, and he hasn’t been able to cover ground as well as he did last season.
When on the ball he has been accused of being casual, and has given the ball away on multiple occasions. Against Manchester City, he reacted slowly to the threat of Haaland at the back post for the opening goal.
And then he went on to make a crucial error, cheaply giving the ball away for the second goal of the game.
At the moment, there is no clear solution to fixing the form of Agbadou, but if Pereira can finalise the signing of Ladislav Krejčí, then perhaps a couple of games out of the starting XI could help.
There is still a quality player there, and what he showed for the club after joining doesn’t just disappear overnight.
Getting Emmanuel Agbadou back to his best will be a major help in what looks already to be a relegation-battling season.