• The central figure in Wolves’ three-man attack, Mexico international Jimenez is already enjoying a better campaign in front of goal in 2019-20 than in his maiden season.
• Jimenez’s tally of 13 big chances created for team-mates is equal with Salah, but better than any other player who plays in what would be classed as a lone central role.
Image: /REUTERS
Raul Jimenez was not a household name in England when he joined Wolves two summers ago, but he has since established himself as one of the best forwards currently plying his trade in the country.
On Sunday, he took his goals tally in all competitions for the season to 25 courtesy of a coolly-taken penalty in the 3-0 win over Everton.
But the 29-year-old is not just a goalscorer, he makes them too, as his tally of 10 assists this campaign illustrates.
On top of all that, he rarely gets a game off, having played more minutes than any other striker in the Premier League in 2019-20.
The central figure in Wolves’ three-man attack, Mexico international Jimenez is already enjoying a better campaign in front of goal in 2019-20 than in his maiden season.
His 16 league goals to date is three more than he managed in 2018-19 after joining Wolves from Benfica, initially on loan but then permanently for a club-record £30m in April last year. His haul is also the most by a Wolves player in the top flight since John Richards scored 17 in 1975-76.
His overall tally of 25 (he has nine in the Europa League) is eight better than the previous season. Only five strikers in the English top flight have more league goals than him this season, with his tally leaving him joint sixth with Manchester City’s Sergio Aguero and Sadio Mane of Liverpool.
But it is his contribution to the goals of others, allied to his own prowess, that really lifts him into a superior bracket. His 10 assists in all competitions means he has been involved in 35 goals for his club this season — a tally only Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah can match.
Jimenez’s tally of 13 big chances created for team-mates is equal with Salah, but better than any other player who plays in what would be classed as a lone central role.
What you do get from Jimenez, though, is a shift. He has not missed a game for Wolves in the league this season, while his minutes played (2,980) is the second most of any player Opta class as a forward in the division — winger Wilfried Zaha edges him out.
He is not scared of putting himself about either when he is on the pitch. Only Everton duo Richarlison and Dominic Calvert-Lewin have been involved in more duels for the ball than Jimenez’s 444, with his success rate in those of 41.89 comparable with the best in the league for forwards.
Where Jimenez could improve is his ruthlessness in front of goal. Of all the players to have scored 10 or more times this Premier League season, his conversion rate of 19.05% is the fourth lowest and his shooting accuracy of 48.81% the second worst. Both pale in comparison to the other strikers currently at the top of the league’s scoring charts.
Wolves will be loath to lose him this summer, as some media outlets have suggested could be a possibility. But if he is to move to one of the division’s big six, they would likely expect these numbers to improve. But we’ll leave the final word to the man who will want him in his side next season, Wolves boss Nuno Espirito Santo.
“He has been working very hard and he is a special player,” said the Portuguese. “His motivation is to improve, he has broken the club record (most goals in a Premier League season) and he is challenging himself again and again every day.
“He has improved in a lot of things, I cannot be specific with one, but if you asked me the other way around there is also a lot of room to improve. He can be better.”