Wolverhampton Wanderers manager Nuno Espírito Santo has made defender Rúben Vinagre his latest signing of the summer as he joined the club from Ligue 1 side AS Monaco on loan until the end of the season.
It is the first time that Vinagre has been loaned out by the French outfit, as Leonardo Jardim wants the defender to gain more first-team experience which he is unlikely to get if he stayed in France.
A player with a lot of potential
Vinagre arrives at Molineux as an unknown entity due to a lack of first team football throughout his career. It is difficult to predict how a young player such as Vinagre will deal with the demands of The Championship but Wolves supporters will be hoping he can hit the ground running.
The defender actually began his career with Sporting CP in Portugal, but made the switch to join Monaco's youth set-up in 2015 which was a huge career move for him personally at a young age.
He has very limited experience but still remains a bright prospect at the club, hence why he was rewarded with a new three-year contract only last June. Due to the success of Monaco last season as they won the Ligue 1 title and also reached the semi-finals of the Champions League, it will be harder for young players such as Vinagre to make the breakthrough into the first team.
Whether the 18-year-old ever makes that breakthrough at Monaco or not will not be at the back of his mind this season as he will be focussed on improving his game in English football. If he is a success at Molineux, then he may be tempted to make a permanent switch in the future if he remains surplus to requirements in France.
Vinagre excited about 'good challenge'
It is a bold move for any 18-year-old player to move countries in order to seek first team football but the exciting project at Wolves was something Vinagre could not turn down. He told Wolves' official site: "I am very happy to come to a big club like Wolves for this season. A new story starts for me here at a club with big aspirations in the Championship. I like English football and the Championship and this is the perfect chance for me to get some experience."
He added: “I am 18 years old and this is a really positive move for me and a good challenge. Working with such a good head coach will be perfect for me and I am looking forward to working with him and doing my best for the team and the supporters.”
It has been a very busy summer at the club as they have huge aspirations of achieving promotion to the Premier League next season. The likes of John Ruddy, Ryan Bennett, Barry Douglas, Rúben Neves, Will Norris, Phil Ofosu-Ayeh and Roderick have all already arrived at the club.