After much hassle, the Catalan club has found a suitable buyer for the Portuguese right-back as Nelson Semedo joins Wolves. Wolverhampton Wanderers has signed Portuguese International right-back Nelson Semedo from FC Barcelona. Wolves manager Nuno Espírito Santo finds Semedo as a direct replacement for Matt Doherty. Doherty joined the London side Tottenham Hotspurs for £15m. Wolves have also sold Diogo Jota to Liverpool for £41m, which can be considered as the funding for this transfer.
Nelson Semedo joins Wolves: Contract details
Wolves confirmed the signing of the right-back on a permanent 5 year deal for €30m plus 10m more in variables from FC Barcelona according to the Journalist Fabrizio Romano. Wolves desperately wanted to sign a right-back after the departure of Doherty to Tottenham.
Nelson Semedo: Career At A Glance
Semedo came from the youth system of Sintrense. He made his debut for Sintrense at the age of 17. In January 2012 he signed a five year deal with Benfica but was loaned out to Fatima(3rd division team) for that season. He was then promoted to the Benfica B team in Segunda Liga. He made his professional debut in a 0-0 draw against Trofense on 10 August. On 9th August 2015, he made his senior team debut against Sporting CP in a 1-0 loss in Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira. Semedo has 43 appearances for Benfica with 2 goals beside his name. On 13th July he joined Barcelona for a five year deal with a transfer fee of 30.5m initially and more add-ons.
He made his Barcelona debut vs Real Madrid in Supercopa De Espana 2nd leg match. The last game he played for Barcelona was a huge disaster with an 8-2 loss to Bayern Munich in the UCL quarter-final. He made 82 appearances for the Catalan side and scored 2 goals in this span. Barcelona is looking to bring in a replacement for Semedo at right-back. Norwich’s Max Aarons and Ajax defender Sergino Dest have both been mentioned as targets in recent days.
Ronald Koeman has made it clear that he has come to Barcelona to build the team in a new way, under a new project. As a result, the Barcelona board is giving the effort to fulfill his expectations. Barcelona has already made a golden handshake with some of their top tier players like Ivan Rakitic, Arturo Vidal, and many more are on that list. Finally, it is the turn of Nelson Semedo, who has been reportedly told by Koeman that he is not a part of his plans, due to which the Catalan club has decided to cash in on him.
What changes Semedo can bring to the Wolves side
Nelson Semedo has an extraordinary pace and can run up and down the flanks. But in recent times his play has not been up to the mark as often he was caught out of position making the right flank exposed to threats. He is also a very skillful player and that gives him a great advantage but recently his performance has not been up to the mark. Nuno would certainly try to use all his strength to improve both Semedo’s and the team’s overall game.
Known for his defensive solidity and athleticism, Semedo has often been criticized for his lack of output in the final third, while he has also not been consistent enough for Barcelona. Wolves could deploy him as a right wing-back in a 3-5-2, or a 3-4-3 a position that suits his strengths perfectly. Also, he would be filling in the shoes of Matt Doherty who played in a position similar to him, so this move could fruitful both or the player and the club.
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