Scouting expert: Wolves fans must be patient with £20m ace Nathan Collins

We’re delighted to welcome Football Manager’s Wolves researcher Dave Azzopardi as our exclusive columnist. Each week the scouting expert will be giving his views on the biggest talking points on Wonderkids across the UK…

Wolves fans must be patient with Nathan Collins after his “hit and miss” start for the club after signing for £20m from Burnley in the summer.

Collins was the club’s big defensive acquisition during the transfer window and was a major reason why Conor Coady was allowed to leave the club, but has struggled in the Premier League this season with Wolves sitting 19th in the table.

But despite his form being up and down, Azzopardi believes that there is still a talented footballer there and that the fans must stay patient as he and Max Kilman build a partnership while admitting there is plenty of room for improvement.

“It’s an interesting one with Collins, he’s been a little bit hit and miss,” he told The Football Wonderkids.

“There’s been some games where he’s been really, really good and some games where he’s been not quite as good.

“He got the red card against Manchester City as well, but I think as Wolves fans we’ve got to appreciate that is still a very young player with not a huge amount of top flight experience. So he is going to make mistakes.

“That’s how he’s going to grow and get better as a footballer.

“I think the way Wolves want to play as well doesn’t suit him as a player. I think he’s a fantastic defender but as a footballer, in terms of playing out of the back and so on I think that’s probably not something that suits his game.

“He definitely is a talented footballer and there is lots of room for improvement there, which you can see from where we are in the table.

“I think him and Max Kilman have still got a lot to improve on as a pair, but it’s still promising signs and I still think he was a really good purchase for Wolves.”

In other Wolves news, the club should be “gutted” they missed out on “Europe’s best” Enzo Fernandez according to a journalist