Not getting any better for Wolves

Wolves disappointed in front of their own fans yet again and the sad thing is those supporters have become used to what is on offer from their teams nowadays. The management has changed but not much else has and on this showing if Wolves are going to get out of this division anytime soon it is more likely to be through the trap door than through the promotion route.

Saunders made one change to the starting line up with O’Hara coming in for Davis, but with Ward suffering a neck injury pre match another change was enforced with Foley moving from the right of midfield to left back and Peszko coming in to midfield;

Ikeme
Zubar, Johnson, Berra, Foley
Peszko, Henry, O’Hara, Sako
Ebanks Blake, Doyle

Wolves dominated early possession with O’Hara prominent but a number of attacks were breaking down when the ball was played to the front men with Ebanks Blake’s control letting him down on a number of occasions. But the striker was to get things right 16 minutes in. Wolves best attack so far saw Peszko and Zubar combine well on the right and Zubar’s cross found the head of SEB who put Wolves ahead. And Wolves were close to doubling their advantage when Sako’s free kick caused chaos in the box and Doyle had two efforts blocked.

After taking the lead Wolves seemed to settle into a cautious shell but Blackpool were looking no threat at all in another uninspiring Molineux game. Zubar got in a good cross that Blackpool were able to clear and then when Peszko’s battling got him into a good position his cross was poor. Zubar was getting forward well but when he tried to get on the end of an Ebanks Blake he picked up an injury but was able to carry on. The game was drifting along aimlessly with Wolves looking comfortable but they gifted Blackpool an equaliser in the last minute of the half. Johnson had the opportunity to clear the ball but inexplicably left the ball for Ikeme when the keeper had no chance of getting to the ball, and Ince nipped in to score one of the easiest goals he will ever score. From Blackpool’s next attack the ball again fell to Johnson and there were ironic cheers when he cleared the ball upfield.

The second half was no livelier than the first but Wolves should have regained their lead ten minutes in. A Peszko cross was missed by the Blackpool defence and the ball fell to Ebanks Blake six yards out and he had time to pick his shot but it was blocked. Zubar was still struggling with the inury he picked up first half but he again continued after prolonged treatment, but then goes off a few minutes later with Foley switching to Right Back and Hunt coming on to play left back. The game was going nowhere but Johnson did get on the end of a Peszko cross but his header lacked power and was cleared off the line.

Then out of the blue the visitors took the lead in the 78th minute. There seemed no danger when Ince picked the ball up in midfield but he hit a powerful low shot that Ikeme got a hand to but was unable to keep it out. Not until the 86th minute did Wolves make two more changes with Davis and Sigurdarson replacing Peszko and Doyle. In injury time Wolves day went from bad to worse when in an off the ball incident Johnson was pushed by a Blackpool defender and then retaliated by pushing the player over and kicking out at him and earned a red card.

Ikeme – had very little to do but should have kept out the second goal
Zubar – probably Wolves best player first half before he struggled with injury and eventually had to go off
Foley – looked uncomfortable at left back early on
Johnson – mostly sound but gifted Blackpool their first goal and then sent off late on
Berra – again the steadiest of the back four
Peszko – had a busy game but his passing and crosses were generally poor
Henry – no great impact on the game and guilty of misplaced passes when trying to push forward late on
O’Hara – good to see some creativity in the central midfield and the likeliest player to make something happen going forward
Sako – one or two good moments but not at his best in recent games and his dead ball delivery has gone from excellent to poor
Ebanks Blake – control let him down on countless occasions but got his goal and no other Wolves player looks like scoring at the moment
Doyle – seems to have completely lost his form now to add to his lack of goalscoring
Hunt – almost a forgotten man after so long out with injury and strange to see him fitting in at left back
Davis and Sigurdarson brought on far too late to make any difference

Its painful being a Wolves fan at the moment and Saunders has not yet found the key to getting some life out of a team of players that cannot get out of the habit of losing. Its seven matches without a win now and although another relegation is unthinkable it would be difficult to argue that Wolves are too good to go down on recent performances. Who knows what will happen in the remaining 5 days of the transfer window but there are some Wolves players who look like they would benefit from a fresh start somewhere else and 2 or 3 new faces to freshen up the squad would surely be helpful. But Wolves are desperate for three points to give everyone a boost while the fans would like to see a performance of passion and inspiration rather than the insipid football that has characterised all this season.

Category: Team News