LIAM BERRY SHARES 5 THINGS WE LEARNT FROM WOLVES V ARSENAL
Wolves fall to another defeat, despite a resilient performance against Mikel Artetas’ Arsenal.
O’Neil was forced to shift his team after losing multiple key players to injury in recent weeks. Matheus Cunha, Nelson Semedo, Pablo Sarabia and Mario Lemina were out of the starting eleven, being replaced by Hugo Bueno, Tawanda Chirewa, Boubacar Traore and Hwang Hee Chan.
Arsenal were coming off back to back loses against Aston Villa and Bayern Munich, damaging their ambitions this season so they were looking for a reaction and to bounce back ahead of their trip to Molineux.
Let’s take a look at what we have learnt from this fixture.
1. Tawanda Chirewa
Due to our lack of attacking options, Tawanda Chirewa made his full debut in the Premier League, and he made a good impression.
Whilst he didn’t make waves with his performance, he came in and did a solid job in a role which is so difficult at the moment with the players at our disposal. He seemed calm on the ball and was always making himself available for a pass.
Saying this, I think he does lack confidence to go forward and really hurt Premier League defences. The risks you need to take as an attacker was not visible in his game and that is definitely something he can work on. However he is still young and for a Premier League debut it was one he should most definitely be proud of.
2. Just play him in!
I could probably count around 10 separate occasions Matt Doherty made an incredible run on the right flank, and not once was he played in behind.
It was so frustrating to not see at least one ball over the top, as Arsenal’s left hand side clearly was a weakness as we found ourselves in great positions in behind their left-back.
Who knows, if one of the occasions that Doherty made a run was spotted, we could have found ourselves in more threatening positions and maybe changed the outcome of the game.
3. Not as young as it looks?
We can all talk about our young and inexperienced squad, and this is certainly true of the bench, but there was only Chirewa in the starting lineup who isn’t considered as an established Premier League player. Everyone else has played regularly.
I think the lack of options up front have made our situation worse, but the spine of the team is still strong and capable of competing at this level, and with more attackers coming back from injury our situation will become better in the upcoming games.
Not to mention the three internationals we were able to bring on of the bench, which hasn’t really been touched on. I think the real issue at the moment is the lack of competition for places instead of ‘depth’.
4. ‘Give me a Ginger from City’
Cole Palmer has gained a lot of plaudits, and for good reason, but another player to come out of Manchester City’s academy has also stacked his claim in the Premier League this season.
Tommy Doyle has impressed me this season, he offers us something that our other midfielders dont have and he had another great performance against Arsenal.
Hopefully we will take up the buy option, as he can play a big part next season, and can turn into a great player with more development.
5. What Next?
With just five games to go until the end of the season, positions are still up for grabs.
We have most definitely surpassed the pre season expectations, and it’s disappointing that injuries have fractured our potential. However if we can finish as high up in the table as possible it could have a positive impact on the money we can spend in the summer.
So let’s hope we get some of our players back, and put in some good performances between now and the end of the season to give ourselves the best opportunity for growth going forwards!
ARTICLE BY LIAM BERRY
I am a life long Wolves fan that is passionate for the club. I am a sixth form student who loves writing about things I love!
1 Comment