LATEST NEWS: Potential £5m Wolves transfer could actually give 22-year-old a new lease of life.
2023 has been tricky for Rayan Ait-Nouri, but there is potential for him to get a new lease of life at Molineux.
The Algeria international got off to a promising start under Julen Lopetegui.
He made a few very good cameo appearances when the Spaniard first came in, and he actually won Wolves’ Player of the Month award for December.
He looked like he was knocking on the door for a start, after losing his place to Hugo Bueno.
But Ait-Nouri’s form then took a bit of a nosedive.
After his display against Newcastle United, which saw him get caught out of position allowing Newcastle to score a winning goal, Lopetegui then stopped playing Ait-Nouri.
He was left out of the next seven Premier League matchday squads.
Ait-Nouri finally played again for Wolves in the final game against Arsenal, coming on as a substitute.
It’s possible Ait-Nouri could yet leave Wolves this summer. But there could also be a possible redemption arc for him in 2023/24.
Aaron Cresswell could be key to Rayan Ait-Nouri renaissance at Wolves
Recently, Wolves have been linked with a move for Aaron Cresswell.
Wanderers reportedly like the 33-year-old West Ham United player and feel he could be a good mentor for Bueno. Supposedly the Hammers want around £5 million.
On the face of it, Wolves signing Cresswell would be a bad thing for Ait-Nouri.
But it actually might be something that helps him.
The whole time Ait-Nouri has been at Wolves, it has been clear that his attacking qualities are superior to his defensive ones.
He loves nothing more than to get forward, take people on and get the ball into the box.
He’s an excellent ball-carrier and has lovely footwork.
But his defensive qualities are not quite there yet, and one wonders if the plan is actually to convert Ait-Nouri into a winger.
Cresswell could come in and rotate with Bueno, with Ait-Nouri being more of an option to play further forwards so as to play to his strengths.
Earlier this year, Claire Hakeman suggested that Lopetegui doesn’t seem to trust Ait-Nouri defensively.
That could well be the case, and so maybe he could rediscover his mojo playing further forwards.
He’ll obviously have to work his socks off though. Because Pedro Neto will be very keen to nail down that left wing position himself.
But it would be a huge shame if a player with such high potential like Ait-Nouri left Molineux this summer.
