Since returning to the Premier League in 2018, Wolverhampton Wanderers have become a sensation in the football world.
They even finished seventh last season, their best-ever league achievement.
Currently, Wolves are only five points behind Chelsea, who are sitting in the fourth spot.
Not only that, but they are also still fighting in the round of 16 in the Europa League.
Indeed, both competitions are postponed because of the COVID-19 outbreak.
However, Nuno Espírito Santo’s men will still be eyeing a Champions League ticket when football returns.
One of their weapons is Diogo Jota.
The 23-year-old has helped Wolves to fight against the big clubs with his brilliant display this season.
This tactical football analysis will examine his role in Wolves’ tactics without further ado.
Diogo Jota Player profile
Jota is a versatile forward.
He can play as an attacking midfielder, a second-striker, as well as a centre-forward.
But his favourite position is down the left flank as a winger.
The Portuguese’s versatility lets him play in a two-forward system or a trio upfront.
This season, Jota has managed to make 15 goals and six assists from 37 matches across all competitions.
He achieved those tallies in just 2,491 minutes of playing time.
Looking at the numbers, that’s equal to one goal contribution in every 118 minutes.
A respectable number to say the least.
Jota’s main weapon is his sublime first touch and anticipation.
Per the statistics, Jota has scored ten (66.67% of his total) first-touch goals.
It doesn’t stop there.
Six of his goals came from the six-yard box.
Such feats underline his good game-reading ability and a great nose for goals.
Diogo Jota in transition
In this first part of the analysis, we’ll examine Jota’s role in Wolves’ transition-heavy attacking tactics.
Under Nuno, Wolves prefer to concede possession more often and tend to attack in transitions.
The stats show that the West Midland-based team only averaged 47.6% of ball possession in the Premier League.
On top of that, their counter-attacking goals tally now stands at four.
That’s the joint-fifth most in the league.
One reason behind that is Nuno’s tendency to let his attackers stay forward almost all the time, including Jota.
Wolves’ forwards rarely help to defend after a failed attacking attempt, furthermore when defending deep.
