Soccer Football - Premier League - Everton v Wolverhampton Wanderers - Goodison Park, Liverpool, Britain - March 13, 2022 Wolverhampton Wanderers manager Bruno Lage before the match REUTERS/Phil Noble EDITORIAL USE ONLY. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or 'live' services. Online in-match use limited to 75 images, no video emulation. No use in betting, games or single club /league/player publications. Please contact your account representative for further details.
Wolves could end up finding themselves in a Premier League relegation fight this season after Sasa Kalajdzic’s injury, according to journalist Dean Jones.
The Lowdown: Cruel blow for Wolves
Bruno Lage’s side may have been hoping for another European push at the start of this season, with the arrival of the giant Austrian striker on transfer deadline day potentially taking them up a gear.
Instead, the new signing endured a nightmare debut for the club, suffering ACL damage in last weekend’s 1-0 win at home to Southampton.
It means that Kalajdzic is likely to miss a huge chunk of the campaign, if he even returns before its conclusion, with Diego Costa set to join on a free transfer to help fill the void.
The Latest: Journalist fears relegation battle
Speaking to GiveMeSport, Jones hinted that Wolves could end up being in a relegation battle if they are not careful, given their upcoming fixtures and the hammer blow of losing Kalajzdic to long-term injury almost immediately after signing.
The journalist warned:
“Wolves will probably be in the bottom three soon. Their next games are against Liverpool and then Manchester City.
“From a club point of view, to sign a striker of his type and quality but lose him immediately, that takes some getting over. They will be sitting there with their head in their hands at the moment.”
The Verdict: They should be fine
Talk of relegation is a little wide of the mark from Jones – he does admittedly speak in a relatively short-term sense – even though Lage’s side haven’t started the season brilliantly and Kalajdzic’s injury is a major setback.
Goalscoring has been a massive problem for Wolves in recent months, having scored just 38 league goals last term and a paltry three in their first six games this term.
Wolves should still be aiming for a mid-table finish, given their defensive solidity and quality within the squad, with the experienced Costa hopefully proving to be a hit, assuming he signs as expected.
It might not reach the heights of last season when it looked as though a top-four finish was even on at one point, but any kind of relegation battle would still be a surprise, even with Lage’s men currently 14th in the table.
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