Gary O'Neil sets out aims for Wolves' young guns

The Spaniard’s new deal until 2028 was a reward for his breakthrough into the first team in the past year, having joined Wolves aged 16.

Nathan Fraser and Joe Hodge have also been promoted to the senior side in recent months, while new breakthrough talent Tawanda Chirewa is closing in on his chance, and O’Neil wants to keep the pathway open to emerging stars.

“It’s really important, I’ve moved quite a few of the lads up to train with us,” O’Neil said on the academy pathway.

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I’m keen for the academy to provide us as many good players as they can because it’s the best route, it doesn’t cost you too much. They just need to be good enough and need to be ready.

“We give them every opportunity. Tawanda has progressed really well over the last few weeks and looks comfortable now with the first team.

“He gets into a little scrap with a few of them now, when he wouldn’t have before, he’d have probably moved aside.

“The academy has produced some really good ones, hopefully they can keep doing so and while I’m here they’ll have a really good pathway through to the first team.

“Of course, the issue we’ve had around Financial Fair Play in the summer means that there wasn’t a massive influx of new players, so there’s an opportunity for the boys from the academy to have a impact.”

Bueno had spent time around the first team but was overlooked by Bruno Lage last season, before being given his chance by interim boss Steve Davis.

However, O’Neil’s message to those looking for a chance is to focus less on the opportunity and more on what they can control.

“Generally, if you’re good enough, determined enough and professional enough, you get your opportunity,” he added.

“I don’t think one manager not giving me an opportunity when I was 17 wouldn’t have stopped me.

“So you have a responsibility yourself to make sure you keep banging on the door. That would be my advice to the young lads.

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Hopefully as a club we can keep producing ones that can impact the Premier League.”