Goalscoring has been a major problem for Wolverhampton Wanderers in recent seasons as they have failed to find a consistent stream of goals in the Premier League.

The Old Gold have not averaged more than one goal per game since the 2019/20 campaign, in which they scored 51 times in their 38 league matches, and they struggled particularly badly last term.

Wolves finished seven points clear of the relegation zone and were not in any real danger of dropping down to the Championship but they only found the back of the net 31 times in 38 Premier League clashes.

Gary O'Neil's side have, however, scored nine goals in eight games so far this season. Although, it remains to be seen if they will be able to end the campaign with more goals than matches played.

Former Old Gold boss Julen Lopetegui swooped to sign Brazilian forward Matheus Cunha in an attempt to solve the side's goalscoring woes in January and, during the same window, opted to cash in on Leonardo Campana.

That may be looked back on as a poor decision with the benefit of hindsight as the Ecuador international has enjoyed a fantastic year, whilst the former Atletico Madrid man has struggled for form this season.

How many goals did Cunha score last season?

Cunha joined Wolves on loan in January, after zero goals in 11 La Liga outings in Spain, and only scored two league goals for the club throughout the 2022/23 campaign.

The 24-year-old dynamo played 17 top-flight games, which included 12 starts, under Lopetegui and was unable to provide a regular threat at the top end of the pitch.

Along with his struggles in front of goal, the Brazil international did not provide much creativity to open up space for his teammates in the final third.

Cunha averaged 0.4 key passes per game and only created one 'big chance' for his fellow attackers, which resulted in zero assists, over the course of those 17 matches.

Therefore, the attacker did not produce quality week-in-week-out for Wolves as he was unable to make an impact as a scorer or a creator during his first five months in the Premier League.

The former Atletico ace, who only completed 9.9 passes per clash, also found the physicality of the league difficult as he lost a whopping 84% of his aerial duels.

This shows that opposition players found it far too easy to get the better of him in the air and this meant that Wolves did not have a reliable outball to hit when they were under pressure and needed to play a longer ball.

Wolves, however, had already agreed to sign him on a permanent basis upon the expiry of his initial loan for a fee that could rise to up to £35m.

This meant that they secured his services for a significant fee earlier this year in spite of his disappointing form during the second half of the 2022/23 campaign.

How many goals has Cunha scored this season?

The right-footed whiz has not had much more luck in front of goal during the current campaign as he has scored one goal in eight league appearances so far.

Only one in three of his shots have been on target this term and the former La Liga ace has missed two 'big chances' to go along with his goal, as per Sofascore, which suggests that the opportunities have been coming his way but he has not been able to make the most of them.

Cunha has racked up 1.95 xG and found the back of the net once every 636 minutes, and this shows that the centre-forward has let his side down with his lack of quality in front of goal.

However, the Brazilian gem has improved his creative output with a return of 0.8 key passes per game and two 'big chances' created so far this season, which is one more than he managed in 17 outings last term.

Minutes played

73

Shots

Zero

Chances created

Zero

Passes completed

Six

Cunha's most recent Wolves performance (via Sofascore)

Meanwhile, Campana, who joined Inter Miami in January, has been in fine form at the top end of the pitch since his exit from Wolves at the start of the year.

How many goals did Campana score for Wolves?

The Ecuador international, who joined in 2020, did not make a single first-team appearance for the club during his three years in English football.

Instead, he enjoyed a number of loan spells away from the Molineux and caught the eye for Inter Miami on loan throughout 2022 as he scored 11 goals in 26 MLS outings.

His form on loan for the American side convinced them to swoop to sign him on a permanent basis at the start of this year as they splashed out a fee of $2.7m (£2.3m) to acquire his services.

Lopetegui seemingly decided that Campana would not have been able to solve Wolves' goalscoring woes and opted to allow the prospect, who was once dubbed "complete" by talent scout Jacek Kulig, to move on.

How many goals has Campana scored this year?

The 23-year-old marksman has since caught the eye with nine goals in 15 MLS starts, along with a further nine appearances as a substitute, throughout 2023, which is seven more than Cunha has managed this year.

He has outscored his xG by 0.98 and has created two 'big chances' for his teammates to earn himself two assists to go along with his impressive return in front of goal.

Campana has also shown more of an aerial presence than Cunha by winning 49% of his aerial battles over the course of his 24 MLS outings this year.

These statistics show that the former Wolves gem has been in fine form throughout the year and has proven himself to be a reliable scorer for Miami, who can also offer a physical outlet at the top end of the pitch.

Therefore, it may have been a mistake by Lopetegui to cash in on Campana before he was offered a chance to showcase his ability in an Old Gold shirt in the Premier League.

The left-footed finisher was never given an opportunity to prove his worth to the club at first-team level and his form this year in comparison to Cunha's suggests that he deserved a shot at the starting number nine role at Molineux.

Hopefully, the £35m signing will be able to drastically improve his output and become the consistent scorer that Wolves have been lacking.