Comment: Striker failure but Wolves' transfer dealings still a success

Yet as the transfer window ‘slammed shut’, as is the fashion to say, there was a social media meltdown, writes Wolves correspondent Tim Spiers.

Let's hope Alfred N'Diaye wasn't scouring Twitter for comments about his big deadline day move (the fact he hasn't tweeted for 14 months would suggest so).

A selection of replies to the announcement that the midfielder had joined on loan for the season included 'we don't care, he's not a striker, goodnight', 'announce Afobe' and 'great striker'.

Yes, the general feeling amongst the Wolves fanbase at 11pm on Thursday (actually make that 11.50pm on Thursday) was one of despondency.

That's despite what plenty of people would consider to be the best transfer window Wolves have conducted. It was certainly the most productive, with an astonishing amount of deals completed.

Twelve players joined the first team squad either permanently or on loan, with a further five promising youngsters (all from overseas) snapped up for Scott Sellars' under-23 squad.

Three players were released, six were sold and 16 senior or youth players, yes 16, went out on loan. That's 42 moves in total...in three months.

New club secretary Matt Wild is probably wondering what he's let himself in for.

But despite the glut of signings, a proven striker is the one everyone wanted. After all, this was *the* key addition of the whole summer...and Wolves couldn't quite pull it off.

A long, long list of strikers were either tentatively enquired about or seriously bid for. Deep breath....Nelson Oliveira, Dwight Gayle, Jordan Rhodes, Idrissa Sylla, Jordan Hugill, Vincent Aboubakar, Benik Afobe, Nathael Julan, Guido Carrillo, Ashley Barnes, Chris Martin, Loic Remy, Stefano Okaka and Jurgen Locadia are all believed to have been on their "shortlist" at one time or another.

So how on earth did not even one of them end up house hunting for a two-up two-down in Castlecroft?

PSV may have done the dirty late on but Wolves had three months to get the main they wanted, so ran the risk of failure by leaving it until the last day.

They had started the summer building from the back. Seven of their first eight additions were either goalkeepers or defenders and the fruits of that labour are already very evident with five clean sheets in their first seven games.

Ruben Neves was the other addition and his £15million capture led to a rethink of just how much Wolves could afford to spend on a striker, so they scoured the loan market (Rhodes and Sylla were two they tried to get on a temporary basis) before having a change of tack in the final weeks and freeing up big cash for the right player, while still preferring to loan a proven striker if possible.

During the last few days of the window they closed in on Locadia...but this went belly-up on deadline day and it was then too late to sort a back-up despite some frantic last-minute efforts.

All of which leaves them with only Leo Bonatini as a senior recognised striker. Ivan Cavaleiro and Diogo Jota can deputise as a 'false 9', while Michal Zyro and youngster Donovan Wilson will now hope to benefit and show what they can offer.

Good enough? Well, not *quite*. The sale of Nouha Dicko for £3.5million, whether he fits into Nuno's playing style or not, does look like an error in terms of the next four months until January. Dicko's fitness and sharpness appeared to have returned of late and he remained at worst a useful option from the bench. The argument that he's not right for Nuno is of course a fair one, but Wolves need players who know how to find the back of the net at this level and, despite a lean couple of years owing to injury, Dicko can do that.

The fact he, Dave Edwards and Jordan Graham were given to potential promotion rivals, particularly in Graham's case at Fulham, is also baffling.

There is a sense of deja vu from January 2016 (when Afobe was sold, a late deal for Kike collapsed and main strikers Bjorn Sigurdarson and Adam Le Fondre produced a total of zero goals between them for the rest of what remained of the season) and it's remarkable that Wolves haven't purchased a proven striker of note since that time.

On the flip side, Bonatini's improved fitness has coincided with some improved performances. His first touch and link-up play complement those around him and he's chipped in with two goals and could have had a couple more. And yes a forward line of Jota – Cavaleiro – Costa doesn't look too shabby when the latter returns from injury later this month. After all, it works for Liverpool, right? Unconventional strikers are all the rage.

Jeff Shi went public yesterday, granting the Express & Star an extensive interview just hours after the window closed in what was a deeply commendable and confident display of fronting up. How many chairman would do that?

Shi has clearly learned a lot in the past 13 months and his transparency, whether you agreed with what he said or not, is to be applauded. Wolves are a better club for it and supporters will appreciate his candid approach.

His point that signing a central midfielder was more important than landing a striker didn't wash with some but you can see where he's coming from in terms of priority positions in the 3-4-3 formation and playing style that Nuno has adopted. Shi put a positive spin on the situation, as anyone would in that position and he has banked up plenty of goodwill this summer.

But let's not beat around the bush – the fact Wolves were ready to spend eight figures on a striker shows how important it was.

Regardless of whether a one came in, N'Diaye is a shrewd addition and if he can hit his stride alongside Neves then Wolves may well have on their hands the best central midfield partnership in the division.

Talking of Liverpool, every man and his dog who saw their opening-day 3-3 draw at Watford said they needed new centre halves, pronto. Virgil Van Dijk was a player they coveted all summer but failed to sign. Is there panic on Merseyside? Last week's 4-0 win over Arsenal suggests not.

The point is no transfer window can ever be without its flaws but Wolves' has still, taking everything into account, been deeply impressive. Barry Douglas for £1m? John Ruddy on a free? Willy Boly and Diogo Jota on loan? It's early days but this looks like magnificent business.

Compare where they are now to a year ago and it's night and day, particularly when considering the rather masterful manner Nuno has brought everything together so far, impressing all at Compton Park with his intelligent man management and attention to tactical details. Long may that continue.

As a few observers have pointed out, if Wolves had signed Neves for £15m on Thursday everyone would be cock-a-hoop.

Should they have prioritised signing a proven striker above all others? Yes they should. Will the apparent lack of a player who can score 20 goals this season cost them? It may. Although many clubs have won promotion without one. Huddersfield's top scorer last year was Elias Kachunga with 13.

But it's all about perspective and the bigger picture. And overall, certainly compared to 12 months ago, Wolves look in pretty damn good shape.