Wolves 0-1 Man Utd: Verdict Thread

[Tony Towner]

I think the same could be said of Neves. 3 out of his top 10 performances in a Wolves shirt. He’s been magnificent.

I'm not sure I'd go that far, mainly because I cba to think about it , but as I said to our Leicester friend, Neves under Nuno in the PL didn't showcase his full talent, hence the suppressed valuation

 

[Dire Wolf]

I'm not sure I'd go that far, mainly because I cba to think about it , but as I said to our Leicester friend, Neves under Nuno in the PL didn't showcase his full talent, hence the suppressed valuation

Very true, he spent far too much time handcuffed to the centre backs. He obviously has much more license to get forward, as does Moutinho. I’m sure at one point yesterday I saw them both in the Man Utd penalty box. That simply never happened under Nuno.

 

[Deutsch Wolf]

I do think a lot of the praise is a little bit overboard at the moment! I'll happily concede it's more entertaining than much of what we saw at the latter points under Nuno (though we also had some truly exhilarating games under him along the way, that far outweigh the rubbish ones)...but people do realise we've lost every game to nil so far?

Adama was way better in the middle bit of 2019/20 than he has been on this season's sample size so far - he was actually producing tangible results most weeks, for one thing - and Neves has been consistently our best player ever since he signed for us.

This all counts for nowt if we don't get points, and a lot of the same failings we had last season are still there now. We look better on the ball and way better at defending set pieces (Raul helps big time with the latter). We can still get very easily undone by one pass any time we don't play a low block and we never work opposition keepers enough.

I'm no xG expert but Bruno's time with Benfica ended after a run of games where they "won" that battle. Meant nothing though as in terms of pure results, it was literally their worst run ever. I like the mindset, but ultimately it's results that count. If we get 1 point or God forbid, 0 points from the next two games then I don't think everything will be quite so lauded. Watching "entertaining" or "unlucky" 1-0 defeats because you don't take chances and can't reliably keep clean sheets without going full belt and braces gets very old very quickly. I wouldn't want us to become Tony Mowbray's West Brom who in the Premier League were full of moral victories and very light on actual victories.

 

[MARKakaJIM]

It's only been 3 games.

 

[Deutsch Wolf]

Well yeah, but I don't see the need to bang on about us as if we're Brazil 1982. We look decent but can't score, I mean you see the flaw here.

There is also no way Adama and Neves have been "transformed" as described above, not even close.

 

[The Bear]

Zero points and zero goals is an obvious issue, but you also have to temper that with the fact we've played 3 of the top 10 teams in the league and didn't deserve to lose at least 2 of them.

We lost plenty of narrow games against the bigger teams under Nuno. We can't really make any conclusions until we've played a representative sample of the league.

At least we aren't conceding lots of chances and goals, and we are now creating plenty of attacking opportunities. The balance seems ok so far but it may need tweaking if results carry on.

I'm cautiously optimistic.

 

[MARKakaJIM]

Traore has got into areas we've rarely seen before, improved his movement off the ball significantly and seems more aware of what's around him already this season, that's some pretty sharp progress with him after 3 years of baby steps previously.

Neves I'd agree, his role is a bit different allowing him to look more involved more often but I don't think the standard of his performances is wildly different.

I think the manager has done as much as anyone could hope for in such a short period of time. The intent is hugely different to last season even if the formation is not. The increased hunger to regain possession, the new found urgency to keep the ball moving which comes from as far back as the keeper, it's not revolutionary stuff but it's a long way from what was going on last season.

Fair enough there isn't anything to show for it thus far, a very short period and games that on paper everyone thought would be far tougher than the team have made them look so far, but surely everyone can see it's way too soon to be concerned yet? It's fine margins at both ends at the moment and pretty much all down to the execution of the individuals on the pitch rather than any systemic failure. Maybe a few new faces tomorrow sort things out or perhaps Lage can do something with what he's got on the training pitch given a little more time.

Future looks bright to me.

 

[Deutsch Wolf]

Not really having a go at the manager (don't think he's been naive or anything so far), happy with the style of football in general, not really concerned, if nothing else as it looks like there are quite a lot of shite teams again.

I just think the praise is OTT at this stage. That's all.

 

[The Bear]

Given the amount of chances created and the fact we press higher and play with more energy and tempo, its not really surprising compared to how lifeless we looked at times last season.

 

[Throbber3]

Given the amount of chances created and the fact we press higher and play with more energy and tempo, its not really surprising compared to how lifeless we looked at times last season.

I think that given it’s pretty much the same personnel Lage has exceeded expectations in style of not results. I am happy to give him some time. If we are bottom three at Xmas then it’s a different matter but so far, I have enjoyed the games in every way bar the results

 

[Deutsch Wolf]

Yeah, but Wolves isn't just about entertainment, is it? If it were I'd save myself thousands of pounds a year and take out a Netflix subscription instead, if it's just "I enjoyed watching that". I want us to win, and for all that we've played well so far - and I'm pleased with that, why wouldn't I be, this is my 34th season of watching this fucking club - it has to amount to something.

I don't think we're *as* close to cracking the conundrum as others think we are, I think there are still big issues, especially if not much happens tomorrow.

As Johnny has said, the profile of the squad outwith Raul is very, very, very light on goals. Continually leaves you open to being at 0-0 when you shouldn't be, and players are good enough at this level to punish you even when you don't deserve to get punished. And then they will see it out. We never looked like scoring after it went 1-0 yesterday.

Up to others whether they agree or disagree but I'd much rather on the whole have a season like last - where we were crap to watch for most of the time (but not as bad as some make out) but never, ever in serious danger of relegation - than one where we end up in a desperate scrap because we can't take chances/see games out but are "better to watch". It's not about that. I never ever want to go back to the Championship, it's shit.

 

[MARKakaJIM]

Not really having a go at the manager (don't think he's been naive or anything so far), happy with the style of football in general, not really concerned, if nothing else as it looks like there are quite a lot of shite teams again.

I just think the praise is OTT at this stage. That's all.

Maybe it's just snowballed a bit with people's general excitement at returning to live football with fans in the ground. A more energetic brand of football is naturally more exciting so a combination of the two perhaps getting some a bit giddy.

I don't think I've seen anyone get particularly carried away though, not seen many predict much above 'carry on like that and we'll be fine'.

 

[t3ch]

just finished watching the game today, ugh brutal when that goal went in

 

[sycophantia]

Not really having a go at the manager (don't think he's been naive or anything so far), happy with the style of football in general, not really concerned, if nothing else as it looks like there are quite a lot of shite teams again.

I just think the praise is OTT at this stage. That's all.

Mate, how long have you been a Wolves fan/forum member? It happens all the time, lose a few games/poor performances...wim shit, gunna go down. A couple of decent performances/wins... ..Wim gooin top 4.
Obviously exacerbated by last seasons fanless games and our turgid performances.

 

[squashnut]

I've always dreamt of having a manager in charge who has scored 0 goals and got zero points from 3 games. XG was designed for clown posts like this.

Well, no manager in charge has ever scored more than zero goals for any team, ever.

 

[Tony Towner]

Well, no manager in charge has ever scored more than zero goals for any team, ever.

If you are going to be an arse then I suggest you Google the names of Glenn Hoddle and Kenny Dalglish. Give me a shout when you have and I'll give you some more

 

[Tom Hark]

Well, no manager in charge has ever scored more than zero goals for any team, ever.

If you are going to be an arse then I suggest you Google the names of Glenn Hoddle and Kenny Dalglish. Give me a shout when you have and I'll give you some more

Oooooh, you've done it now - you've upset Tony. Bad start.

While we're all being pedantic, though, haven't you ever heard of a player manager?

Welcome to the forum, btw.

 

[sycophantia]

Oooooh, you've done it now - you've upset Tony. Bad start.

While we're all being pedantic, though, haven't you ever heard of a player manager?

Welcome to the forum, btw.

To be even more unnecessarily pedantic...a player manager isn't a manager, he's a player manager

 

[Tom Hark]

To be even more unnecessarily pedantic...a player manager isn't a manager, he's a player manager

But he's also a 'manager in charge'. (I think we'd better leave it now )

 

[Jolemai]

Decent reception for Elokobi?