FA Cup

I’ve seen worse Wolves cock-ups.

To chuck the game away with three minutes to go is chastening, but ultimately, our patched-up and below-par side were simply bested by a hungrier opponent.

The team sheet suggested danger. If the starting eleven couldn’t get it done, there wasn’t much on the bench to win us the game. 

The reasons for that are a debate for another day, and another chapter in Fosun’s complicated legacy as club custodians.

Still, you don’t have to be an expert to know that either Fabio Silva or Sasa Kalajdzic would have posed more of a threat to Coventry’s defence than the fledgling Nathan Fraser.

With our young forward struggling and only Ait-Nouri offering a genuine attacking outlet, the Sky Blues smelled blood and would have been out of sight long before we mustered a comeback were it not for Sa’s heroics in goal.

I’ve been a vocal critic of our goalkeeper for a while now, but I couldn’t fault him today. He spared the blushes of his hapless defence on more than one occasion and didn’t deserve to be on the losing side.

Credit to the lads for mustering yet another comeback. Given that we were the poorer side, it’d have been one for the ages if we’d have seen it through. 

Molineux was momentarily rocking when Hugo rifled in our second, with a carnival atmosphere in the air and Wembley beckoning.

But it was a bridge too far for O’Neil’s army, whose barmy defending helped turn the result on its head for a second time in favour of the Sky Blues.

The loss will sting for a while and we can only spend the new two weeks reflecting on what might have been if Cunha, Dawson, Hwang, and Neto had been available.

We’ve already extracted so much out of the FA Cup this season.

Winning at the Hawthorns under difficult circumstances, showing the resilience to come back three times against Brentford and finally seeing off Brighton with the squad stretched to breaking point.

Nothing has been easy but the team, as they’ve done so often in the league, have come together and found a way forward.

It’ll need to be the same again tomorrow with even more players out and a thoroughly decent Coventry team making the short trip to Molineux with a trip to Wembley up for grabs.

I’m not sure what to expect but it’s been a season of largely pleasant surprises, so I’m optimistic of another good outcome.

Coventry

I always keep half an eye on the Championship but have dialled into Coventry’s form in recent weeks and sadly for us they’re in the groove.

Despite losing to Albion a few weeks back, they’ve been upwardly mobile in the table and saw off Watford last weekend to move within a point of the play-offs with a healthy goal difference to lean on if the margins remain tight.

They lost the play-off final to Luton on penalties last year and sold a couple of key players in the summer, so it’s a credit to Mark Robins that they’re still right there pushing for promotion again, as well as maintaining this superb cup run.

Oxford, Sheffield Wednesday and Maidstone is a scandalously favourable sequence to a quarter-final and they probably couldn’t believe their luck again considering the other names still in the competition.

In Haji Wright – who I was surprised to learn cost them a club record £7.6m – and on loan Everton striker Ellis Simms, they carry a real threat going forward. Those two alone have managed 26 goals between them and plenty of others chip in too.

A lot of their play goes through Kasey Palmer, who came through at Chelsea and is doing good things for them in a deeper lying attacking role.

Given everything they’ve gone through as a club over the last decade or so and the nonsense with their stadium, I don’t begrudge them their success. I just hope it’s not at our expense tomorrow.

Wolves

What does Gary have in mind? I haven’t heard anything from the press conference yet but am assuming Neto and Bellegarde are both ruled out. Cunha is ‘back on the grass’ but I’d be surprised if that meant he was playing tomorrow.

The above is what we’re left with and as we saw in the second half against Fulham, there’s plenty of good football in that team.

If Dawson is fit I’d put him in and that’s no slight against Santi Bueno, who did well last weekend. But I think we want Dawson’s leadership and presence to help us through such a big game.

If Gary wanted to be more adventurous, he could drop one of the centre-halves, push Ait-Nouri forward and bring either Hugo Bueno or Doherty in at full-back. But I think he’s more likely to go with the more familiar shape and put his faith in the tried and tested.

Predictions

No Prediction League points are up for grabs in the cup, but feel free to make your best guess in the comment section.

I’m expecting fireworks tomorrow. Lots at stake and a hot atmosphere with Coventry packing out the double away end. The ideal scenario would be a robust defensive performance that limits them to next to nothing with us controlling possession and ultimately finding a way through. Is that wishful thinking?

I fear it being similar to Sheffield Utd and if it is like that, I’m not sure their attackers will be as charitable and it could be a long old afternoon.

But however it does unfold, I’m certainly not going to back against this Wolves team so will go for a tight 2-1 to the old gold. Take us to Wembley lads.

Up The Wolves!