Wolverhampton Wanderers have not exactly enjoyed the best of times since the summer of 2022. The first half of the 2022/23 campaign was dismal and there was a genuine chance that the Old Gold could be relegated.
Julen Lopetegui arrived in November last year, and he worked his magic to prevent the club from dropping to the Championship, but a summer of uncertainty meant he left just prior to the season starting.
Bruno Lage may have led the club to a top-half finish during his debut season at the club, yet his summer signings did not exactly light up Molineux last term and this nearly sent them spiralling into the second tier.
Bruno Lage’s transfer record at Wolves
The former Benfica manager did not enjoy the best record in the transfer market and this was, arguably, his downfall.
Ahead of his first season, players such as Rayan Ait-Nouri and Jose Sa – who are still at the club – joined Wolves and while they may have impressed, the likes of Yerson Mosquera, Bendeguz Bolla, and Louie Molden are nowhere to be seen.
Fast-forward a year later and Lage was still spending lavish amounts of cash. Matheus Nunes and Goncalo Guedes both arrived in big money transfers, while Nathan Collins and Sasa Kalajdzic did not come cheap either and the pressure was on for the manager to deliver another top-half finish in the Premier League.
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From the players mentioned, only Kalajdzic remains in the Midlands, but he has not quite hit the ground running at the club and his value has decreased significantly since joining almost 18 months ago.
Sasa Kalajdzic’s statistics at Stuttgart
The striker first caught the eye at Austrian side Admira Wacker, where he scored 12 goals in just 25 matches during the embryonic stages of his career, and this led him to a move to German side Stuttgart, who were then struggling in the second tier.
The club were promoted in his first season and the Austrian striker shone in the Bundesliga during his maiden campaign at that level, scoring 16 goals and grabbing six assists in 33 matches, he was swiftly emerging as one of the finest attacking talents in the league.
Despite suffering a few injury problems during the 2021/22 season, Kalajdzic still recorded six goals in 15 league matches, and it appeared he was a transfer target for both Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich.
It was perhaps strange to see Wolves enter the running for the player amid interest from the two aforementioned European giants, but the Old Gold fought off all potential suitors by securing the 26-year-old for a fee in the region of £15.4m and, considering his Bundesliga experience, it looked like a shrewd move.
He ended his stint at Stuttgart with a record of 24 goals in 60 appearances and if he could replicate that sort of form in the Midlands, then he would prove to be a big hit among the supporters without a shadow of a doubt.
Sasa Kalajdjiz’s career has stalled at Wolves
Upon his arrival, the forward was praised by Wolves technical director Scott Sellars, who said: “We are very happy to secure the signing of Sasa, who is a talented young striker, has many excellent attributes to his game and fits the profile that we have been looking for this summer.
“Sasa has had great success in Germany’s Bundesliga, and we are looking forward to seeing what he can do in the Premier League.”
High hopes indeed for the player, and he made his first appearance for the club against Southampton at the start of September, and it was a game that the club needed to win to offset a poor start.
Disaster struck during the first half, however, as the former Stuttgart striker suffered a serious anterior cruciate ligament injury and while he attempted to keep playing, he failed to emerge from the tunnel as the second half got underway.
The medical team provided an update following the game, saying: “Sasa felt a pain in his knee late in the first-half against Southampton. Unfortunately, scans reveal an anterior cruciate injury and he will see a knee specialist tomorrow.
“We now need to support Sasa in his recovery and further updates will follow.”
This injury kept him out of action for the whole season and, following an extensive rehabilitation programme, he returned ahead of the current campaign, but has looked a shadow of his former self.
Sasa Kalajdzic’s season in numbers
The Austrian frontman has featured in 13 matches so far this season, yet, has only started three of them, and it appears as though O’Neil is placing his trust in other attacking members of the squad.
He does have three goals to his name thus far, yet his statistics have not exactly been eye-catching as the forward has not been able to establish himself as a reliable scoring option for the club.
Indeed, he currently ranks in a lowly eighth spot across the squad for shots on target per game in the Premier League (0.2), along with ranking sixth for goals and assists (two), which clearly indicates he is not quite the same player post-injury.
It may take him longer than anticipated to get back up and running, yet during his injury spell and his poor displays so far this term, his value has dropped rapidly.
According to Football Transfers, Kalajdzic is now valued at €7.6m (£6.5m) and unless he can improve his form over the coming months, this is not likely to increase.
O’Neil could even be close to letting him depart in January as it hasn’t quite worked out for the £35k-per-week striker in England and this could see him depart after just 18 months.
Wolves have had a mare on the 26-year-old, but that is not to say he has no chance to ever become an effective striker. Given the right team and manager, he could sparkle and repeat the heroics he displayed during his first season in the Bundesliga.
It has not quite worked out for him in the Premier League and O’Neil will be looking to recoup some of the £15.4m that the club spent on him.
At this moment in time, it does not look likely that any team would be prepared to go near that figure and this means that Wolves could need to take a significant hit on him and cut their losses if they decide to move him on during 2024, which is why the move was a nightmare for Lage.
