Julen Lopetegui resisted the urge to start new signing Matheus Cunha against Aston Villa on Wednesday night – but the Brazilian did make his Wolves debut at Villa Park.
Cunha, who will become Wolves’ £43million record signing once his loan from Atletico Madrid is completed, was named among the substitutes. Lopetegui revealed before the match that Cunha didn’t train with Atletico in the two weeks leading up to his exit and he wasn’t able to start working with his new teammates until January 1.
Cunha was made to wait until the 66th minute to make his debut. He replaced the spent Diego Costa to play as Wolves’ lone frontman for the final 25 minutes.
The 23-year-old has often played as a second striker throughout his successful spells with Hertha Berlin and Atletico, but Lopetegui believes he can deploy his new signing in a number of attacking positions. Speaking before the match, Lopetegui said: “He can play in the middle, as a second forward, or maybe the wing.”
