Haters will say it’s only a friendly.
But I saw things in this latest comprehensive victory that inspire confidence for the season ahead.
Comfort in a back four, bodies flooding the opposition penalty area and of goals – three more actual goals.
Ok, the first was a calamity from the Besiktas keeper but the mistake was drawn by Wolves pressing their defenders, another advantage of this new, more aggressive system.
There was nothing gifted about the second either, with Rayan Ait-Nouri orchestrating the move, gliding past players, exchanging passes and then picking out Daniel Podence.
The finish was excellent but even more encouraging was the fact there were several other gold shirts waiting for the same ball. How often have we been able to say that?
Neto, Podence and Gibbs-White dominated the game more with every passing moment and some of the interplay was high level stuff resulting in similar penalty box overloads.
Pedro’s goal to complete the first half rout should really have been added to with his partners in crime missing good chances in the second but that was the only minor disappointment.
Well, that and the departure of Raul Jimenez with what looked like a groin injury. It didn’t appear overly serious but as our only centre-forward we could do without the worry. Surely the club will act on that shortage in the weeks to come?
The continued absence of Jose Sa is another concern even though both young deputies we’ve seen between the posts so far look calm and assured, albeit without a single minute of Premier League experience between them.
Our reigning Player of the Season looks like he’ll be well protected when he does return, with Collins and Kilman doing everything you’d want from a centre-half pairing.
Fears over further injuries to key personnel will persist until the squad is bolstered but with the players we do have it continues to shape up nicely.
The injury to Raul might finally kick Jeff into investing in a back up forward.
(Back up forward? That makes no sense but you know what I mean).
No injury is good but better that it happens now than when it’s too late to do anything about it.
Apart from that, another very promising performance which bodes well for the season.
Early days yet but MGW is starting to look like the player we all hoped he might become.
– We need at least two new forwards.
Yes. Had my doubts about MGW but nothing will make me happier than him shoving those doubts in my face. Still need a couple of quality additions Jeff.
Definitely need at least one or maybe two new strikers and a CM who can get forward.
I came in late and only caught the last few minutes. A good run out, all the same.
The Jimenez injury is a worry but, hopefully, it will speed up Wolves’ pursuit of another striker. Ironically, Fabio Silva scored for Anderlecht today, shortly after coming off the bench
Cracking goal too, by all accounts.
In short, and without getting carried away, we were brill. Simple as that.
– As many predicted, Lage needed time to get the team to play his brand of football. The Wolves transfer window activity is late as usual. With a couple of world class strikers, I can see us make an upset. I’d rather see us spend a lot of money on two strikers than for instance a midfielder player such as Nunes, even though he’s good, because the return of Morgan Gibbs White is like getting in a new signing.
Agree with all that KJK. It’s strength in depth that could do for us, especially up front with the demise of Chiquinho.
The haters can go on hating, Thomas, but the rest of us should be impressed by this Wolves performance. We were up against one of the top three Turkish teams, and we struggled to start with. With their early pressing and chances, it looked worrying. Our young rookie keeper kept his head though. Then, we simply clicked. Our interplay was delightful. Collins and Kilman already look a top quality partnership, and snuffed out every chance Besitkas mustered. Jimenez looked sharp and should have converted from a rebound but almost instantly made amends by converting from a mistake by the keeper. Hopefully his early substitution was only precautionary. What I was particularly impressed with, apart from the sublime build up for the slick Podence goal, was our high pressing strategy throughout. The sheer number of Wolves players in and around the Besitkas penalty area was pleasantly surprising. When Donk came on for Jimenez I thought we were shutting up shop, but instead he was played as a striker. We never let up in attack, even when we threw several of the kids on for the last ten minutes. There is serious quality in our depleted senior squad, and in the youngsters. Bruno has had a good look at them all now, and will surely know who to bring in to complete the Wolves jigsaw. Over to you Jeff, speculate to accumulate!
12 days left.
Definitely gone – Ruddy, Marcal, Saiss, Hoever and Silva for the duration plus several loans (including striker Cuitrone) and fringe players who we’ll probably never see again anyway. Traore probably unlikely to figure one way or another.
Back in – Sarkic, MGW
In – just Collins so far.
Lots of rumours for more departures but hopefully none with much substance.
Lots of unsubstantiated rumours about possible incomers but status probably similar.
Where we are now?
Much reduced wages bill.
Probably very well stocked in defence and ok in midfield (as long as Neves and MGW stay).
But now (see above Silva / Cuitrone) ONLY ONE recognised out and out striker in Jiminez who on last season’s evidence is nowhere near the player he was 2 years ago (for perfectly understandable reasons) and may now be injured.
Don’t know if anyone is as worried as me about the last paragraph but it’s not as if this situation has blown up overnight and has been made worse by the departure of Fabio (who scored 7 minutes into his Anderlecht debut).
Why has this situation not been addressed? Just hope Shi and Sellars have a rabbit waiting to jump out of a hat. Or are we heading for a rerun of the Willian fiasco?
Whilst not knocking young Fabio, I will wait until he scores regularly before I say he has turned it around. Yes he scored 7 minutes in, but he missed a sitter 5 minutes in. I am sure he will come good, but I feel it is too early to make sounds.
Agreed – one swallow doesn’t make a summer. On the other hand we are just a little bit short in the strikers dept. at the moment.
We all see the current picture through a different lens, PJB. I look at the defence and see positive additions and improving young players; likewise with midfield and Bruno is to be congratulated for bring through young talent. We are one quality forward addition away from an exciting season and pushing for Europe and cups. Keep the faith and your powder dry.
I’m almost with you all the way Ww.
As above with no further departures we are well covered in defence and midfield, but we are desperately short upfront; whatever the rights and wrongs of Fabio’s loan without him we only have Jiminez as an out and out striker and post David Luiz I ‘m not even sure he is that any more – last season he was almost purely a hold up man.
So for me at least 2 strikers needed unless someone can step up, after all isn’t that what The Academy is supposed to be all about. And why is Campana still in the States?
Very true, let’s hope we do indeed recruit a forward or preferably two who can hit the ground running. Hwang’s early performances were extremely promising but I don’t see him featuring much this season.
Don’t know why you are worried about that last paragraph, it’s the same tripe you’ve been belching out for the last six months, now honed to perfection.
Well if it’s now honed to perfection all I need to do is copy and paste and keep hammering the message home. But in a nutshell we’re going backwards. Plenty of players going out very few coming in.
Yes. I know, wait till the window closes, but by then 5 of 38 matches will have been played.
I keep “watching this space” but thus far it’s not moving at a great pace is it? And btw the downvote isn’t from me, you are of course entitled to your opinion.
Tripe.
Belching.
Your medieval literary style is not Shakespearean nor Chaucerian it’s childish and below the standards set by most of the civilized bloggers who use this site.
Reasoned debate is clearly way above your capabilities.
Yeah, you tell him mate.
Didn’t know I had a style.
That’s an improvement!
Thank you, kind sir!
Reasoned debate can get boring, taking the piss is fun!
Clive – taking the piss can be much more boring when repeated ad infinitum. If you don’t actually want to discuss football but aspire to being a comedian why don’t you post on a blog for would be comedians.
Sorry if you think I lack a sense of humour which I don’t, but I really thought this was supposed to be about The Wolves which is the one thing we all have in common and the odd bit of humour is a bonus.
Let’s just agree to differ about the rationale behind this site.
Or
“If you love the Wolves stand up”.
ditto
ditto
etc.
Signing off on this thread.
Surely there’s a bit of Falstaff in his bluff comraderie? A touch of Lear’s Fool in his unliscensed chatter? A little of The wife of Bath in his ribald vulgarity? Nay even Hamlet in his existential angst? A full basket of tripe good sir.
What?
Sorry Shirley, I’ve had a pipe.
That should have been Mark Anthoby in his nobleness, Othello in his trust and Wolf in his clothing. 1 lv
Definitely saw Super T in the pool at Alicante. Having a whale of a time. Just back from warming the Barca bench. Que Sera, Sera. Una cerbaza, por favor. Ibiska Baskos. Its a rough old life. Hope they kept him fit for his swan song season with the crew, I bet he’s missed us, daft sausage.
As for Fabio scoring after 7 minutes, I can still taste the feathers. He favoured the move to Lilliput aswell. Even though he signed a new 1 year contract with us, WWFC. We’re becoming a laughing stock of Pogba proportions. OK not quite that tragic. No wonder the Bank of Noodles is a bit shy when it comes to doling out the dosh.
Anyway its nice and sunny in Rwanda, lots of Rasta. I’ve got my own corrugated iron box next to a copper mine. Untroubled by the fact that if your next unelected PM is either Truss / Sunak, you are F,,,,,kt m8.
Still, spare a thought for the Toffees.
1 lv & COYW.
Never ever seen a backheel double nutmeg in my life before. Women are playing brilliant. And ….. what a feking save too.
I can watch it over and over.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/live/football/58889034?ns_mchannel=social&ns_source=twitter&ns_campaign=bbc_live&ns_linkname=62e06a401136d922db66f97e%26Thank%20you%20and%20goodnight%262022-07-26T22%3A30%3A06.613Z&ns_fee=0&pinned_post_locator=urn:asset:5d0516ad-f772-4fe0-a158-d7cff3c9798f&pinned_post_asset_id=62e06a401136d922db66f97e&pinned_post_type=share
It has now emerged that Raul’s injury is far more serious than first thought and that he will probably not be match fit again until October.
So nearly 2 years after his life threatening injury we only had one back up striker for whom we paid £35 million and he has now been sent to Belgium for a season to “learn his trade”. This is hardly a situation which has developed overnight (38 PL goals in 21/22) but Jeff Shi today goes on record to say he won’t alter his transfer policy to address the situation leading up to and resulting in this shambles.
Suggest the club might be better off being run by the likes of Billy Smart or Fred Karno.
Well, it isn’t run by either of those.
It’s run by Fosun.
We like it or lump it.
Harping on about the same thing all the time doesn’t change things.
We all know the transfer policy is flawed.
We don’t really have to be told about it every five minutes.
And I mean that in a very loving way.
DOOGooder
I think it’s arguable that it’s not actually being run by anyone at the moment.
We’re drifting aimlessly and getting close to running on empty.
I do fully accept though that Jeff is only the public face of Fosun so point well made.
So Mr Shi won’t alter his transfer policy because of Raul’s injury.
If his policy was to bring in a new striker anyway, and I think it probably was, then good. I’m glad.
Precious little sign of it happening though is there, specially as Bruno expressed a wish to have his full squad together weeks ago and this is not exactly a new situation, it’s been ongoing for nearly 2 years. Also they must have known they intended to let Fabio go out. The level of support for our manager is pitiful.
Jeff Shi & Scott Sellars aka Karno & Smart
You have a point Wolfstroker.
My explanation is that Chinese culture places great store on ‘face’. To back down because of demands, particularly by foreigners (i.e. non Chinese) is a grave loss of face. Chinese don’t like explaining themselves to ‘foreign devils’ like us. If we sign a striker, or strikers, Jeff will say that was his policy all the time. If we don’t, Jell will say he told us so. Chinese are nothing if not inscrutable.
What they won’t respond to is the sort of slagging off that we might direct against Morgan or Moxey in the same situation.
Dances
My point exactly.
As I have intimated above – what a way to run a circus!
Chinese “culture” clearly leaves no room for changing circumstances due to “face” (loss of). Even Morgan and Moxey were never guilty of that. All commercial enterprises (as opposed to the state owned model) need to have Plan B, C and probably D.
So the underlying truth (as I’m sure many of us including you realise) is that WWFC is being indirectly run by PRC politicians.
And whether they like it or not no football club can survive without real supporters putting bums on seats. I think that point was proved by watching sanitised football matches on TV played in empty stadia during the lockdowns.
Reluctantly, as they rescued us from the depths of long term mediocrity’
I now believe if Fosun don’t move on that is exactly where we are about to return We have passed the stage of better the devil you know unless there is a fundamental change of attitude in Shanghai.
Our football club is facing strangulation by inertia caused by a culture which is incompatible with the environment in which it operates and faces another steady decline or worse.
And yet the Chinese Communist Party have just coughed up £20.5 million to buy Nathan Collins. Impressive.
Try counting how many players have left.
Hysterical comparisons with Morgan/Moxey. You think they would have bought Costa Cav Jota Neves Kilman Sa Moutinho Jonny Ait Nouri Chiqinho Podence Raul Collins Traore Boly . Oh look. They are nearly all still here.
At the end of May Jeff Shi sat down with Johny Phillips and said we need to optimise, rotate reshuffle. He also said we will have a ‘new team for sure’. Jeff also said we are ‘aiming for a better squad’. There has been a degree of rotation and reshuffle. There has been a quality addition to the squad in Nathan Collins. Scott Sellars said a couple of weeks back he was ‘hopeful’ of further additions. The window closes 1st September. Five weeks to go. We will have to see what unfolds.
Heard it all before COD, every window for the last 2+ years.
5 weeks to go, but only one week till the start of the season.
Really, really hope my scepticism is misplaced.
Back your manager Fosun.
There’s nothing quite like a little racial stereotyping to win an argument.
The Chinese are “inscrutable”; they don’t like “losing face”?
What? All 1.4billion of them?
Someone will be quoting Sax Rohmer and referencing Fu Manchu before long.
This place is beginning to stink.
As you so rightly describe yourself …
GOODBYE …
No place on here for you…!!
racial sterotyping !!! the chinese oh who would have thought the chinese would do racial sterotyping …….derrrrrrr.
this blog is footy not politics but when you have chinese owners its very difficult to differentiate sometimes as they are so definitely ruled by the state regarding their investments and we unfortunately are one of their investments and i wish with all my heart they would sell us on and we could break free of the political
disaster that looms regarding invading Taiwan which would undoubtedly result in severe sanctions and we would definitely be part of that .
But at the moment could we please just keep at football and wolves
Any way how is every one ????? enjoying the summer i hope
Triffic Spikey. Too many tourists and my garden is dying in the drought, but otherwise, could scarcely be better.
so ive just looked up sax rhomer fu man chu brilliant im hooked but i dont think he owns fosun …. does he ????
No my grandad no own fosun my grandad own half world …much better
oh and now dark side of moon
Prefer fu man u better!
and fu west brom
Just to change the mood.
Thank you to Mike Lord Twix Oldfield for your call last night. We are currently in Linlithgow enjoying time with the grandkids. See you and Lillian sometime next season. I won’t be at the Fulham match though, so enjoy.
Ryan Giles hatrick for Boro would be good tonight. Splendid start to the season and despair in Smethwick.
I do have sympathy with the earlier contribution re racial stereotypes. History tells you it is dangerous. 1930’s Germany a massive marker in the sand. 1970’s UK. I remember it well. I was (still am ) a punk. Rock against racism. Back then black players like Cyrille Regis, Brendon Batson subject to ‘monkey chants ‘. Bananas thrown on the pitch. The chap at Chelsea in the mid 80’s. So racial stereotypes are there. Still here. I know this is a football site but an earlier contribution made reference so thought I would comment. Lots still to do. UK is totally polarised politically. Even if you support a strike or not is 50/50. Anyway. I’ll fuck off now and wish you all a great wikend and Wolves ay we!
watching the sporting game and they are one tough side a proper test but unfortunately we have nothing up front yet again
the more i watch jose sa the more convinced i am that he is the best keeper i have ever seen play for wolves
Jose Sa is fuckin ace !
Jose Sa by a country mile and I’ve seen them all since (but not including) Bert Williams. And despite his foibles I’d put Phil Parkes second mainly for the effortless way he fielded crosses.
Fair play PJB if you saw the legendary Bert Williams. My old man always always always bangs on about Bert. Johnny Hancocks Billy as well.
COD
Sorry. rereading my post it’s a bit ambiguous; I didn’t see Bert he had just retired when I first went to Molineux and Malcom Finlayson was between the sticks, so I’m on the same page – Sa definitely the best Wolves keeper I’ve seen.
ps. At least that’s one position that doesn’t need an upgrade!
My position doesn’t either. I’ve got a brilliant view from my seat and, thanks to being a season ticket holder, now have a swanky (well almost ) new scarf to boot. Well done Wolves PR dept on that one.
I really rated Phil Parkes too although he was known as ‘Dracula’ and ‘velcro’ in the North Bank!
Big Phil obliged with a Q&A at one of our bloggers gatherings, along with Steve Daly. And both Steve and Willy Carr at another.
Bloggers should consider coming to these which are usually held over the final home game weekend of each season. They are awesome.