Wolverhampton Wanderers’ shortcomings in recent transfer windows became clear when Bruno Lage’s starting line-up to face Newcastle United emerged at seven o’clock on Friday evening. Having to contend without talisman Ruben Neves is bad enough, but the absence of Leander Dendoncker proved too big an obstacle to overcome. A midfield two of Joao Moutinho and rookie Luke Cundle was never going to be ideal. Despite Cundle’s costly slip, Lage said he was ‘very happy with him’ in his post-match press conference.
Bruno Lage said: “He played as a number six and had a lot of responsibility to coordinate the game. He had big confidence with the ball, as we saw. It’s the first time he has played this role in the Premier League. Against Tottenham he played as a third midfielder, today he played as a number six. When we changed he played as a number 10 between the lines. I am very happy with him and I trust him. If I don’t have Ruben or Leander, he’s available and we trust he can go inside the pitch and work.”
Lage is a huge supporter of Cundle and recognises his place in Wolves’ future, but it is unreasonable to ask a 19-year-old with only one previous senior start to his name to replace Neves or Dendoncker, especially in a midfield two where there is no hiding place.
