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Reported Wolves targeted Gedson Fernandes was outstanding for Benfica as they defeated Frankfurt 4-2 in the first leg of their Europa League quarter-final on Thursday.

In March, Portuguese outlet A Bola claimed he was attracting the interest of the club and after his performance this week it's easy to see why.

The player has a buy-out clause in his contract of €120m (£103m) according to A Bola’s report. But a fee of €40m (£34.3m) was quoted as the figure Wolves would have to pay in order to land the talented youngster.

It's unknown whether they are looking to take their interest any further but his display on one of Europe's biggest stages proves why they must do everything they can to secure his signature.

All of the plaudits from the game will go the way of Joao Felix, another player linked with Wolves, for scoring a hat-trick, but fellow teammate Fernandes also has a tremendous impact.

Gedson Fernandes (Benfica vs Frankfurt)

62 touches

2 key passes

1 dribble

2 tackles

3 interceptions

(Stats courtesy of WhoScored)

Fernandes started at the top of the midfield for Benfica last Thursday but was terrific both defensively and offensively.

He's extremely energetic and as a result would be perfect for the Premier League and Nuno Santo.

Wolves have plenty of numbers in midfield but it's this attribute that makes him stand out from those he may find competition from if he were to join.

However, Nuno doesn't necessarily have a box-to-box midfielder at his disposal with the likes of Leander Dendoncker and Ruben Neves playing in deeper roles.

He'd the perfect player to link defence to attack and that's summed up by his impact last Thursday night. He was able to carry the ball forward with his dribbling and displayed his phenomenal vision with two key passes.

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His defensive work rate was also excellent and the fact he can perform at both ends of the pitch makes him a rare talent.

If the Midlands club can afford him, then he must be signed.