Wolverhampton Wanderers have experienced up and down form in the Premier League recently, with a 1-0 home win over Burnley then being followed up by an underwhelming 1-1 draw with Nottingham Forest and then a demoralising 3-0 defeat at the London Stadium to West Ham United.
The Old Gold cannot complain about their current predicament however when it comes to where they sit in the division standings, ten points above the dreaded drop-zone in 13th spot under Gary O'Neil's management.
Wolves' season has not been derailed majorly even with star winger Pedro Neto being out for some time now, the assist king at Molineux – managing eight assists from just ten games – gearing towards a return to the first team imminently after picking up a hamstring injury in late October.
Yet, Wolves could be preparing for a future without their dazzling number seven if the West Midlands outfit are successful in their pursuit of this equally explosive attacker in January.
Wolves transfer latest – EFL star being lined up
Wolves have been after Norwich City winger Jonathan Rowe since the summer transfer window as has been revealed by the Sun in the last few days, the stuttering Canaries rejecting a £15m bid for their homegrown talent at the time.
This won't stop O'Neil and Co going back in for Rowe in January however, attempting to land the Championship hot-shot again who has only become more crucial to David Wagner's cause at Carrow Road this season after initially bursting onto the scene.
Wolves won't be alone in reigniting their interest in Rowe, with past rumours from TEAMtalk suggesting that Crystal Palace and Aston Villa were keen on landing the Norwich winger with Unai Emery's men getting ready to go back in for the young winger.
O'Neil's side will hope they can jump to the front of the queue to sign the exciting 20-year-old, eager to have their next Neto in the building sooner rather than later to soften the eventual blow of the Portuguese forward leaving Molineux.
How Jonathan Rowe compares to Pedro Neto
Both players in question have been vital for their sides this season, especially Rowe who continues to step up and be counted for the Canaries despite Wagner's men underwhelming regularly as a collective.
Whilst Neto excels at creating chances and being unselfish, Rowe's craft centres on being a clinical finisher for his second-tier side – netting two goals versus Ipswich Town in the fiercely contested East Anglian Derby last match, both strikes showcasing Rowe's alert awareness to score goals by seizing on defensive indecision.
It led to football journalist Ben Mattinson referring to Rowe's rich goalscoring form as the 20-year-old being "on fire" on social media during the match, the Canaries forward garnering more and more glowing praise with Rowe now on 11 goals in all competitions.
Signing Rowe could make O'Neil's men less overly reliant on the likes of Hwang Hee-Chan to fire goals in regularly, the South Korean attacker is the top scorer at Molineux this season in the Premier League with eight.
Rowe would have to work on his creative game to fill the Neto void however, Neto coming in at a remarkable 8.13 progressive passes received per 90 minutes over the last year according to FBRef. In stark contrast, Norwich's 20-year-old winger comes in with just 3.92.
Yet, there's not too much of a glaring difference between Rowe and Neto when it comes to progressive carries and exploiting defensive frailties with swashbuckling runs forward.
Neto does trump Rowe with 4.46 progressive carries to 3.80 but the Canaries forward is still a work in progress and a talent who could thrive when making the step up to the Premier League.
Rowe does beat Neto when it comes to touches in the attacking penalty area however, coming in at 4.93 to the 23-year-old's 4.03 to further highlight Rowe's ability to be in the right place at the right time to finish chances.
Neto looks as if he will be staying in the Midlands this coming transfer window, O'Neil stating that he will stay put despite previous interest from Arsenal, but signing the £4.6k per week Norwich talent – as per Capology – feels like a move worth pursuing still.
Wolves' star winger will eventually want to test himself away from the West Midlands outfit and follow previous first-team stars Ruben Neves and Nathan Collins out of the door for pastures new, O'Neil potentially signing Rowe now lessening the sting of this future exit.
