Wolverhampton Wanderers have made some memorable deals over the years, known for recruiting strongly from Portugal thanks to the influence of Nuno Santos and Jorge Mendes.

The Midlands club have hits and misses in terms of transfers, from the success of Ruben Neves to the misjudgement of Pedro Goncalves, Wolves have seen many come and go.

In a season that at one point threatened relegation, being bottom of the table when Julen Lopetegui took over from the dismissed Bruno Lage in November, the Spaniard has turned things around for the club who are safely set for another season in the top division.

With lots to improve on comes a lot of reflection, and when summarising players that have departed and who they have been replaced with at the club, one name flags as one that got away; Rafa Mir.

Why did Wolves sell Rafa Mir?

When Wolves signed 20-year-old forward Rafa Mir from Valencia in 2018 to be reunited with former coach Nuno Santo, it was a transfer that brought excitement with the youngster being an established goal scorer for Valencia B.

The forward was also linked with Real Madrid at the time, but made the decision to join Nuno in a venture to England while the Midlands side were still in the Championship.

It never worked out for the Spaniard, who endeavoured on three loan spells during his three-year stay at the club before returning to La Liga, signing for Sevilla in the summer of 2021 for £14m.

In three years, the forward made four appearances for Wolves but never seemed to be one to break through, with loan spells back in Spain being the best situation for the youngster at the time.

How is Rafa Mir playing now?

In his two seasons at Sevilla, Mir has found the net 19 times in all competitions and has established himself as a strong outlet for goals in La Liga.

Praised by Celta Vigo president Carlos Mourino as being a “magnificent player”, the 25-year-old could’ve been a strong inclusion to Wolves’ squad, considering the club's difficulty scoring goals this season.

BARNSLEY, ENGLAND - JANUARY 13: Rafa Mir of Wolverhampton Wanderers applauds the fans  during the Sky Bet Championship match between Barnsley and Wolverhampton at Oakwell Stadium on January 13, 2018 in Barnsley, England. (Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt - AMA/Getty Images)

The Midlands outfit are the Premier League’s lowest scorers this season, netting just 30 goals in 35 games in what has been a wake-up call to Lopetegui to recruit a forward in the summer.

The former Wolves man has performed better over the past year than both the club's current forwards, Diego Costa and Raul Jimenez, not just through goals but the threat he provides to an attack.

The forward ranks in the top 8% of strikers in Europe’s top five leagues for total shots per 90 minutes, averaging 3.66. In comparison, Costa averages 2.13, while Jimenez records an abysmal 1.99.

The same applies for how many non-penalty goals the forward is expected to score per 90, with Mir averaging 0.43 xG and Costa and Jimenez both scoring under 0.3 in the same bracket - as per FBref.

Like Goncalves’ rise to form since leaving Wolves, the club have to find worthy replacements for talent lost. Hindsight is a wonderful thing, but not for those at Molineux, who could’ve had Mir leading their line had things worked out better previously.