WOLVES 2 PALACE 2: 9 WOLVES FANS GIVE THEIR OPINIONS
BLACKPOOL WOLF
Frustrated again.
No motivation in the first half; we were flat as a pancake.
Then we go 1-0 down and Doyle, who was one of our better players, gets taken off. We somehow find ourselves 2-1 up and then give the lead away to make it 2-2. At 2-2, Crystal Palace make three separate substitutions and Gary O”Neil does nothing.
Joao Gomes was definitely man of the match for his second-half performance. Cunha and Guedes also seemed to want to give it everything, but I don’t think there were enough players who had the same energy.
Once again, Bellegarde comes on around the 60-minute mark and provides us with nothing. Sarabia just wasn’t switched on all game. Not only did he miss two golden chances, but he was also offside when it was four on three in our favour and he could see across the line. That’s just not acceptable. The first goal we conceded is either terrible goalkeeping by Sa if he doesn’t call for the ball, or terrible defending by Larsen if Sa calls for it but Larsen decides to ignore it. Rayan Ait Nouri didn’t have his best game. He had a couple of chances, but he was holding the ball for too long. Larsen really didn’t have an effect on the game other than his goal.
The moment Gary O’Neil said it wasn’t a must-win game is when I knew we wouldn’t win. To have fewer shots off and on target, fewer touches in the opponent’s box, and fewer passes in the final third of the pitch is unacceptable when you’re at home against Crystal Palace.
Bye bye GON, nice man, but being nice doesn’t win you football games.
Time for Sergio Conceicao, Roger Schmidt, or Rafa Benitez if any of them even wanted the job. At this point, I would take Mickey Mouse.
Louie Lefevre
A point against Palace but it isn’t enough. The run of games without a win is embarrassing now and so infuriating as a fan. Taking Doyle off when he had been arguably the best player on the pitch is beyond me. Set pieces, both attacking and defending, looked terrible. Ait-Nouri is so agitating to watch. Does something wonderful only to try and take on one player too many and lose the ball before sulking rather than tracking back. I would sack GON ASAP but I can see Fosun letting him have Southampton. Changes are desperately needed now.
PAM WELLS
After seeing the lineup, I felt really excited, but it seemed like we threw away more points.
In the first 10 minutes, we looked quite sharp and even won a corner, but we didn’t seem likely to do much with the possession. After those 10 minutes, they gradually came more into the game, having one or two chances, but nothing we couldn’t handle.
I watched Larsen this week, as I don’t think he has always had good service, but I thought he was very poor. He drifts into an offside position so many times that you can’t pass to him. I also thought Sarabia had a poor half, and I expected both of them to be subbed at half-time.
Surprise, surprise, no subs at half-time, but when he finally made some changes, he took off Doyle, who was one of our better players, and Toti, switching to a back four. Not long after, there were terrible defensive errors, and Palace took the lead. I don’t know if Sa called for the ball or if Larsen just decided to head it straight to a Palace player.
We settled down a bit, and Bueno played a brilliant pass to Cunha, who, with excellent technique, got it through to Larsen for the equaliser. Lo and behold, not long after, “The Pitbull” got a great goal, and we were in front.
But we are Wolves, and we couldn’t push on for a third. We made another defensive error, and they levelled it. The last 10 minutes felt chaotic, and there was no way we were getting a winner.
Once again, we have to suffer heartbreak. We are now in serious trouble, and goodness knows what is going to happen. My man of the match was between Bueno and Gomes, and I’m giving this one to João Gomes. My performance rating? I can only give a 6.
CRAIG HICKEY
JOHN TARAS
Where do you start?
All week, O’Neil has been saying it wasn’t a must-win game. Then Southampton won, Ipswich drew, so we were bottom before kick-off. Did the players need any more motivation? His team talk should have been simple! Fast forward to half-time and we were lucky to still be level.
No urgency, no hunger, no pressing. Playing silly balls at the back made it easy for Palace to press high! Too often we had to rush the clearance straight back to Palace. The second half was a continuation. Sarabia missed two glorious chances, and the final pass just wasn’t going to a Wolves player.
Then, true to form, we gifted Palace a goal from a clever free kick. A defensive error gifted Palace the lead. Gary O’Neil finally makes changes, but he takes off Doyle, who had been playing okay.
Somehow we score twice, but you know we’re not going to hold out for our first win. Palace score a simple goal from a corner. I couldn’t see us scoring again, but Palace nearly nicked it.
On the touchline, GON was expressionless or fixed on his iPad. The team weren’t set up for the game. They didn’t show enough urgency, desire, or hunger. I can’t see it improving under the current setup.
Frustrated because this team can achieve better.
GEORGE LAKIN
Minimum of 4 points was what I said was required from Brighton/Palace for O’Neil to keep his job for me, and we’ve got 2. So no excuses. He needs to go.
3 goals conceded from set pieces in 3 games. Maybe the poor old set piece coach wasn’t the problem after all, who’d of thought it?
Gary has absolutely no idea how to stop us leaking goals at a rate up there with the worse the Premier League has ever seen. A team that needs at least 3 goals to win any game will almost certainly be relegated.
With this squad that’d be a travesty. Irrespective of whether O’Neil was properly backed in the summer or not, or whether we’re a centre back short until January, he should be getting so much more out of this squad.
Today’s performance epitomises what we’ve become under him, scatty. We look really poorly coached and it’s becoming borderline ridiculous that we cannot see out a game playing one consistent system. He has no idea what works.
We were well in that game all the way, but that was purely down to the quality we had on the pitch. The 2 goals and quick turnaround just showed how potent we could be if we were actually coached effectively in a system that works, and that the players understand. A new manager could quite easily do that. Please don’t wait any longer.
SCOTT DRAME
O’Neil’s strategy took effect after the break, turning the game around. João Gomes, Cunha, and Lemina stood out with their performances, showing skill and determination throughout. José Sá also delivered an impressive display. Their combined efforts made a significant impact,
FINLEY SMITH
Not good enough.
In the first half, we weren’t great. Crystal Palace had two real chances. We lacked going forward. We had a few good spells, but overall it was quite poor.
In the second half, it was better but still not good enough. Palace scored and Molineux started to turn. Wolves made a few changes, then scored two goals but conceded again. We should have been tighter and more compact.
We really should be beating Crystal Palace at home!
For me, Gary O’Neil has to go. I can’t see him being the man to take us forward. Hope I’m wrong though.
Man of the match ~ Semedo.
Performance Rating 5.
I reiterate…Not good enough.
KARL WHITEHOUSE
Gary decided to make one change in the side by dropping Captain Mario Lemina for Pablo Sarabia. Not many managers would have done that, which might be due to the knock he suffered in the Brighton game.
We started the game nervously, with Crystal Palace attacking us in numbers on counters. It makes you wonder who the team at home really is.
We gave the ball away too easily for my liking. We should keep possession, hold onto the ball, and show who is in charge of this game. Instead, we are letting Palace into openings, exposing our weaknesses.
The first half showed how poor we are at the moment. Larsen was in the box, not being supplied, looking lost and often annoyed with himself.
In this half of football, we did not cause any problems for the Crystal Palace side. We failed to create many chances. It’s not a great start to a must-win game. What does Gary have to do now to sort this out with 45 minutes to save his job? The fans will be on his back.
In the second half, we started as the brighter of the two teams. These 45 minutes will tell us where we stand as a club in terms of management and the season.
We had chances for counter-attacking movements but also lost the ball too much. It’s frustrating to see, and we have to be much better than that.
Our set-piece play has let us down again. Sa has cost us yet again, being in no man’s land. You need to be stronger than that in these games; it’s simply not good enough. We have real problems, and it’s frustrating.
Gary made three changes, and the fans have started to turn on him. They are clearly not happy with this performance.
The team, in angry mode, created a counter-attacking movement to get back into the game. We have to keep this up and secure a result, which we desperately need in light of our league position.
The team, fired up, turned the game on its head. This momentum needs to continue with good movements and play. It shows we can win when necessary, and the fans have now switched to cheering the team on.
Then, a set play cost us again. Poor defending from a corner means we do not learn from these mistakes. This has to be sorted out in training sessions.
We struggled in the last ten minutes of the game, and we could have lost. The decision now lies with the owners about whether to keep Gary at the club after this result. I’ll say it now, this could be his last game in charge. We need to change direction because we can’t keep this up. The current run says it all.
