Wolves signing this 23-year-old Brazilian attacking ace would be a smart move to bolster the attack further

Why Wolves should complete a deal for Brazilian winger Pepe

According to Brazilian outlet SporTV (h/t Birmingham Live), Wolves are keeping close tabs on Gremio winger Pepe with a view to a potential move before the summer deadline. 

Those claims have been further backed up by UOL Esporte (h/t Birmingham Live), who report that the player’s agent is due to fly to West Midlands to hold talks with the Premier League club this week. 

As per the source, the 23-year-old has been making waves with his recent performances in Brazil, thus putting several clubs across Europe, including Wolves, on red alert.

Profile

Pepe started his career with Foz do Iguacu in the Brazilian fourth-tier and had a loan spell at lower division club Coritiba before earning a move to top-flight club Gremio back in 2016. He made his Serie A debut in 2017 and has gradually established himself in a prominent role over the past couple of seasons.

The Brazil U-23 international has accumulated 15 goals and 6 assists in 72 appearances for Gremio in all competitions so far. Those returns are pretty decent considering that he is still very much in the developmental phase of his career and hasn’t always been a regular starter.

Pepe, though, has shown significant signs of improvement in the new campaign, scoring twice and assisting once in 6 Serie A outings for the struggling outfit. The 23-year-old has primarily featured as a left-winger at Gremio, owing to his right-footed nature, but is also versatile enough to play out wide on the other side and in a central role up top.

Pepe could add more depth to Wolves’ attack

Wolves have already forked out a staggering £35million to bolster their attack with the acquisition of 18-year-old centre-forward Fabio Silva from FC Porto this summer. The Portuguese teenager has been roped in with the aim of reducing the goalscoring workload on Raul Jimenez, who was clearly overworked last season.

Having already added a back-up striker to their ranks, Wolves should now look to strengthen their wide attacking cavalry. Wolves seemed to struggle with the challenge of having to compete on multiple fronts last season due to the lack of adequate depth in their attack. 

Nuno Espirito Santo already has the likes of Diogo Jota, Pedro Neto, Adama Traore, and Daniel Podence competing for places on the flanks but there is certainly enough space for another versatile winger like Pepe. 

Wolves have largely focused on adding up and coming players to their ranks this summer, as evident from the arrivals of Fabio Silva and Vitor Ferreira. Pepe, to that end, would certainly be yet another exciting addition to the existing pool of burgeoning young talents at Molineux.

Verdict

Pepe has started the new Brazilian Serie A campaign in spectacular fashion. 

That’s not to say he would be an immediate game-changer for Wolves, considering the difference in quality between the two leagues. However, the Brazilian starlet still has his best years ahead of him while his versatility means that Nuno Santo should definitely relish working with the South American prospect.

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With that in mind, Wolves completing a deal for the 23-year-old winger could pay rich dividends in the years to come.