Wolves: 'Very strange' Lage over 91-cap star who's 'one of the best'

It’s “very strange” that Wolves striker Raul Jimenez has been dropped by Bruno Lage, according to journalist Dean Jones.

The 91-cap Mexican international has been the club’s talisman since joining for £30m but has been forced to settle for a place on the bench in recent games.

When Jimenez was dropped at West Ham last month, it looked like Lage was just resting the striker to keep him fresh for Wolves’ cluster of games ahead, which didn’t appear a bad decision considering he played 90 minutes at Arsenal three days earlier.

Fabio Silva was picked to start at the London Stadium, although Wolves were quite comfortably beaten despite the 1-0 scoreline, with Lage’s side mustering up just a single shot on target.

Therefore, it came as an even bigger surprise when Lage picked his side for the visit of Crystal Palace on Saturday and Jimenez was once again overlooked. Silva was also dropped, with Daniel Podence tasked with playing an unfamiliar false nine role.

Lage’s decision backfired as Wolves suffered a third Premier League defeat on the bounce to further damage their European hopes, with even Jimenez’s introduction not enough to spark a second half comeback.

And Jones was left confused as to why Jimenez was left on the bench for a second match on the bounce.

He told GIVEMESPORT: “Even if Jimenez isn’t scoring goals, you have him in the team as an outlet if nothing else. You can’t play Podence through the middle.

“As a defender or even midfielder sometimes you want an out ball and a guy you can stick the ball up to hold the ball up, bring others into player and the next phase begins from there.

“Jimenez is one of the best at that, so it’s very strange [he has been dropped].”

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