For quite some time, Benfica were trying to find a home for Raul Jimenez, and the Portuguese press published fanciful asking prices.
It was often suggested the Lisbon club wanted more than €40m which seemed farcical given Jimenez’s performance for them.
In two full seasons, the striker scored 13 Liga Nos goals for Benfica, and whilst he was mainly used as a substitute, he did get a lot of appearances in the Portuguese league.
Therefore, the loan move to Wolves was widely welcomed in Mexico. This would be a fresh start on a great stage.
Scoring against Everton on his Premier League debut, it was hoped the footballer had found his mojo and everything would be great going forward. That hasn’t happened, and whilst Jimenez does make a contribution, he’s only scored three times and one of those was a penalty.
Mexico’s El Guardian says the player is currently in a ‘nightmare’ at Wolves, because of the club’s poor run, and that there’s still no sign of ‘light at the end of the tunnel’.
The club’s situation is called a ‘crisis’, and El Guardian say Wolves have ‘forgotten how to win’. What they don’t mention is that only five teams have scored less than Wolves’ 13 in 14 games.
As it stands, that €38m buying option probably won’t be used for the 27 year old.