When we lined up against Bolton back in December, things were looking decidedly bleak for Wolves. But a strong team performance, a sprinkle of Milijas magic and ten minutes or so of gut-churning, backs-to-the-wall defending, secured us three precious Premier League points.
Oh how I long for a similar outcome tomorrow.
What a result that would be.
Wolves defended bravely to see out a 2-1 win at Molineux
And what a time it would be for Wolves to finally throw down a marker and take a giant step towards a second consecutive season of Premiership football. You see we’ve steadily accumulated points throughout the campaign, mainly pulling out results when we’ve absolutely had to, but never really pushing on or doing quite enough to put daylight between ourselves and the dropzone.
Tomorrow is another glaring opportunity to do just that.
Recent performances from both sides suggest there’s every chance of Wolves claiming a famous win. Bolton have lost convincingly on more than one occasion in the last few weeks, shipping goals at one end and failing to register anything at the other. Encouraging signs indeed.
Wolves haven’t exactly been prolific, but the shift to the 4-5-1 shape, the form of Kevin Doyle and the emergence of Adlene Guedioura have given fans a renewed sense of optimism. I would even go as as to say, the majority of supporters genuinely believe we WILL beat Bolton on their home patch.
I just wish I shared their confidence.
This game just gives me an uneasy feeling (which is hardly ideal, as I’m traveling the 90 odd miles to see it). The thought of victory just seems too good to be true, which is perhaps a feeling that’s been cultivated through years of being let down at the crucial moments by my beloved team.
Or am I just being a pessimist? Should I feel bad for thinking that Bolton can’t continue to defend as badly or be as profligate in front of goal? Should I bury my head in shame for thinking that Doyle can’t continue to defy what one player should be capable of doing? Should I beat myself with my mouse mat for thinking ‘this is Wolverhampton Wanderers. We never do things the easy way’?
Time will tell, but I dream of being proved wrong.
Anyway, the formalities. The team picks itself barring disaster:
Hahnemann
Zubar
Craddock
Berra
Ward
Foley
Henry
Jones
Guedioura
Jarvis
Doyle
My prediction is a 1-1 draw, because Wolves are in decent form but I can’t shake the feeling of impending doom, so I’ll sit firmly on the fence.
If you’re going to the game, have a great day out and get behind the lads. It’s a biggun’, so they’ll need the support more than ever.
Up The Wolves.
Of course we will win.
No question.
No doubt.
No worries.
No fears.
And of course, as usual……………no left back.
Ward is a disaster, useless, a waste of good air, a total liability, and will be our undoing during the rest of the season, unless he is dropped, fired and put out to pasture, preferably back in the irish bog he came from.
In a later blog i will tell y’all how i really feel.
FOWB
How can you forget big George?
My Liverpool season ticket mate from the Wirral (who claims Wolves are his second team!) was laughing about how crap Elokobi looked when he came on against Spurs.
Totally agree that a player signed as a forward is unlikely to make is a premier league left back – but given the current squad MM’s lovechild might be the lesser of two evils!
if I remember rightly this was Ward’s first game back, and we won! He was our best player that day. He should have been in the Ireland squad.
I’m not that confident about this game, especially as they have not scored in 5 games, which means they have to score. a draw 1-1. Doyle!
Is there no one else awake?
Why no comments today?
Pure coincidence that it was Wards first game back, we proved we could win with 10 men!!
Ben, my magnetic Wolves logos for my truck are badly weathered, and I need new ones.
Next time you go to the club shop, can you buy me a pair, and mail ‘em over?
Your Dads got me address, think of it as a late Xmas gift for me!!!
Ta a lot.
FOWB
we’re going to win today. you heard it here first! i’ll get the magnets for you clive. a stephen ward one is currently on offer-i’ll get you a pair
bollocks…..after today get one for each player, they were all shit
Six – one to wolves with hatricks from the returning keogh and SEB from the bench. Consolation for Davies! Some bloke in the hot pork sandwich queue behind me at the Spurs game actually spouted this type of cr@p and believed it!
Seriously though its going to be tight, and I doubt it will be one for the purist! I would cut off the little finger on my left hand now for a one nil win!
I cant even watch/listen to the game as I am on a poxy university intensive weekend! Too old to let this sh*t get in the way of the football! Roll on Football First at 10.15pm!
Bolton haven’t scored in 505 minutes in the Premier League – just like Portsmouth hadn’t won in nine games – the writing is on the wall boys!
Wolves have a fine record of ending opposing teams poor records be it ending their goal drought or allowing them to get their first win in the last 10 years. It’s just how Wolves are.
I am hopeful, because this is Bolton, and for me second only to the hatred of WBA, that our beloved team will do everything in their power NOT TO GET BEATEN by the whippet loving, flat cap wearing wankers from up North.
Please don’t use offensive initials on the internet……its sandwell town, or the shit, not W.. !!!
FOWB
Apologies Clive, I hand my head in shame!
I think Ward’s been one of our best players this season and there’s certainly noone better to replace him. You must be crazy to want him dropped. Sorry, just saying what I think.
We have a habit of messing these big games up but I’ve got a feeling we won’t tomorrow. Really want Bolton to go down for obvious reasons. I didn’t know until today that Coyle played in the 95 playoffs against us. I thought he was a bit of a twat for leaving Burnley for Bolton, I think he’s an even bigger twat now. Love them to go down and Burnley stay up.
With us both being lower teams don’t reckon this’ll be streamed on the internet, let me know if anyone finds anywhere to watch it.
You haven’t seen many games this year then, have you??!!
He was useless in the Championship but made to look extremely average by the poor opposition, but now, he’s being found out week after week, and opposing managers are rubbing their hands with glee, and telling their teams to stroll down their right side, coffee in hand, past Ward, pull Berra out of position and cross for Craddock to try to contain half a dozen opponents lining up for free headers, while Zubarman sees how many he can shove in the back without getting caught.
Still, the silver lining is that most of our opponents haven’t got the brain cells to know right from left.
Having said that, we are still gonna win tomorrow.
FOWB
Season ticket holder so i’ve seen a few, how many times you been to the molineux this season clive? I’ve had offers to work abroad but turned them down because i want support my team on a saturday afternoon.
It’s a bit harsh slating our defence, the minimum i expect from a wolves player is 100% and all of the back 4 give that. Wardy might give his man a bit too much space but he recovers pretty well and manages to block more crosses than get past him.
The guy loves wolves and he’ll stick with us come what may, i’m sure he’ll become a wolves legend. I love him, I think you’ll have to suffer watching him play at LB for a few years clive.
http://www.iraqgoals.net
Usuallly it wont work in the first 5 mins, but after that you should be ok. hope you have fast internet!
Ward was ok earlier this season, now hes getting worse and worse. I have a bad feeling about this game…. but im still tipping a 2-1 or 3-1 win.
UTW
Look out on MOTD2 tomorrow, Chiles will be wearing a Wolves shirt.
Ho did we lose against that sh*t?? Bolton made us look really poor, which I suppose is what we are. Berra was awful, I’d like to see his stats on completed passes because as far as I could tell he didn’t make 1.
How many times did we try to cross the ball for it to be beaten away by the first man? And what was Craddock doing leaving Knight to take advantage of all the space in the world for the goal.
A lot of players below par today in what was a no lose match. Very disappointed!
Think that’s quite harsh Jed. at some points we were erratic in defence but we played quite well I thought.
ward seems to have one moment of madness every game, he needs to sort that out. apart from that he was fine.
guedioura was really good, taking him off seemed to change the game as we were on top. keogh did nothing, think Mick brought him on too early. i reckon Mick will srop Foley soon and put Keogh in.
Another “must not lose” game lost.
Just Man U to play next weekend. No chance against them either!
Louie – I actually hope you are right about Keogh and Foley as it will be one less defender on the pitch. From what I have heard Berra had another shocker today so why not try Zubar in the middle and Foley right back? No chance, forgot MM does not like putting square pegs in square holes!
Surely we should be playing 4-4-2 against teams like Bolton and keep 4-5-1 for the bigger teams iin the Prem? Will we play one up top away at Burnley? We wouldn’t have done last year.
Berra wasn’t that bad. I watched it. he did ok, as did all of them. I’d like Foley at right back, but rather Berra than Craddock next to Zubar.
maybe we can pull off another shock win.
Anyone know what has happened to Milijas?
Not so long ago he was going to be our saviour!
I always say this about any player for any team.
If a cross or corner doesn’t pass the first man he should be docked 10% of that weeks wages. they’d soon learn!
I didnt see the match. waiting for motd but in general annoyed. being on 27 points leaving the bottom 3 behind would have been a massive boost. best chance to stay up this season and we are making it really hard for ourselves. oh well, live of a wolves fan i suppose!
At least one good news…. pompey beat burnley, so at least theyre dragging other teams down with them.
I went to the match today, i thought the other lot wanted it more than we..I think MM should have changed it at half time by bringing on another attacker to help marathon man Kevin doyal, because sooner or later he’s gonna get knackerd or knobbled playing by his self up front.playing that formation against other teams like us dos’nt work. Anyway we had bad luck hitting the post twice…what are we gonna do against Man U Rooney with the defence we have… !GOD HELP US.!
First, to answer Nick, the last time I was at the Mol was April for the QPR match. It’s a tad difficult commuting from 4000 miles away.
I’m pushing 60, so I’d put money down that I’ve seen as many if not more games over the last 50 years than most on this blog, which as I’ve stated before gives me as much right to praise or criticize as the next fan.
So bollocks to that subject.
Next, today’s performance, which I watched live, was a farce, a disgrace and a complete and utter shambles from the top down.
Bolton were there for the taking, so MM picks one up front again. He wasnt prepared to try and win, just not lose.
Pathetic, Cowardly.
Next, our wonderful captain hardly passed forward once, and gave the ball away too many times to count.
Ward…………..well, crap first touch and got worse with every minute. He had a couple of good tackles, which by the law of averages, and boy is he average, he was gonna get, but why cant he find one of our players, instead of hoofing it up the pitch?
I got the impression that we are scared of the ball.
It’s not a fuckin’ bomb, learn to want it and use it properly!!!!
The whole team were collectively shit, no other word.
Unluck in hitting the woodwork twice, but that was countered by lottsa good luck coz they should have had at least four, besides the one they scored.
And did lovechild Keogh set a record for coming on, not touching the ball and getting booked inside 1 minute.
Ebanks Blake…………lovely chest, by the game is called football, not titball.
Tear up your early birds folks, who wants to see Championship footie at remiership prices.
Roll on next weekend, lottsa goals at the MOL!!!!!
Is it obvious I am royally pissed off with our non performance today?
FOWB
After my last comment, here’s a thought….MM to make 10 changes next weekend.
Let’s face it, they could only do better than that excuse for a team today.