Rising Wolverhampton Wanderers star João Gomes is “one of the best in the world” at “disarming” opposition players, thanks to a history of playing futsal in Brazil.
That’s according to his former coach Mauricio Souza, who has hailed the midfielder as he continues to impress at Molineux under Gary O’Neil.
Gomes has found himself as a first-team regular under the Wolves manager this season, helping to fill the gap left behind by the summer departures of Joao Moutinho and Ruben Neves.
The 23-year-old has been at Wolves since an €18.7m move from Flamengo in January last year and, after establishing himself in the second half of last season, is now a key player at the club.
He’s proven to be worthy of that status too, with two goals and one assist in 23 games in the Premier League so far, with both of those goals coming in the recent win over Tottenham and the assist in a 4-2 win over Chelsea.
Gomes appears to be a youngster on a quick rise and his former coach certainly thinks so, highlighting his best strength may come from a history of playing futsal.
“In my opinion, he is one of the players who most “puts his foot on the ball” that we bring from futsal,” he told Premier League Brasil.
“He is the player who really disarms, who tries to steal the ball, tries to disarm. He is among the best in the world at disarming the opponent.
“João has always been very technical. A player who played in more midfield positions, as first, second or even a little further forward, because he has technical quality, has a good shot.”
