Gary finds a way.
With each new hamstring pull the challenge becomes harder, but his team just keep on going.
It was Bellegarde and Neto disappearing down the tunnel before half time today and with Wolves creating little even before those injuries, I was bracing myself for a rough ride.
Far from it.
A fast start to the second half was rewarded with Ait-Nouri’s opener, which itself was reward for one of his best performances in a gold shirt. With our attack decimated, his ability to break through lines is all the more important.
The same could be said of Mario Lemina, who really is super and personifies the approach of the team – flexible and willing. Put him wherever you want on the pitch and he’ll do the job. Today it was on the left of the attack and he was the most effective attacker on show.
Joao Gomes is another key player and it was his nifty footwork that opened the door for Nelson’s defected strike that looks like going down as an own goal.
Fulham could have got back in it long before their last kick of the game consolation but Jose Sa made a couple of fine reflex saves and his defenders blocked out the rest.
I thought Santi Bueno was very good and despite being left out of the starting lineup, Toti came on to remind us why he’s normally in it with another towering display and another lovely bit of skill to setup the opening goal. He is vastly underrated.
All focus now shifts to Coventry and with Gary likely to be without any fit senior attackers, the lads are going to have to dig deep to make it to Wembley.
Based on everything I’ve seen this season, I suspect they’ll find a way.
Somehow Mario Lemina has replaced Neves and more. The lads got everything, one of the bargain signings of all time.
I thought that Neves ,although a great player lacked a toughness like a player in the mould of Paul Scholes.
Lemina is what the wolves sides have been lacking for yonks.
Just think of it., Neil. We got rid over 50K for Nunes, –a man who`s talent is far less that his self appraisal and who considered playing for us beneath his dignity– and in return we got an amazing talent in Lemina for less than one quarter of the price. But a bigger difference is that Lemina is humble and just loves playing for WWFC
Then to cap it all, when Nunes left we were able to afford the brilliant Jao Gomez to play alongside Lemina, giving us what I believe to be the best midfield pairing in the country. Now we can all enjoy watching Nunes sulk as he sits forlornly on the bench at Ma City.
Greetings
Can’t believe I’m reading this Ruben stuff. Are ye all mad? The lad kept us alive for 2 seasons, stepping up after the Nuno debacle, and after Captain Cody ‘departed’. reality It’s we the fans who keep the players on the pitch, they play for us. As Kenny Hibbitt said of the 1974 League cup final. Great piece on ‘Wolves Express’
What a monster win all things considered, one for all.
1 lv & COYW
You hit the nail on the head again. A never say die attitude but it’s when we play at a higher tempo the team flows much more. The slow passing around at the back has to be the exception rather than the norm. I personally think that Ait Nouri loved the freedom of the park and looked a Worldie. Better than Trent-Arnold any day.
And as for Super Mario. Play him anywhere
I was disappointed that some scoring opportunities were wasted when the players diddled around instead of just trying to get a solid shot on target.
Let’s hope both injuries are not too bad.
No senior forwards fit- the fullbacks step forward to score.
Mario is arguably our best all round midfielder since Paul Ince and its a reflection of his brilliance that there is little mention of Ruben this season.
Adama did his best to spoil the party but Sa showed
us yet again he is a world class shotstopper.
Will we find a way next week- yes, we will, it could be Gary’s Cup this year.
Ruben who ? ?.
I thought we played some sublime football at times. The likes of Ait -Nouri, Gomes, Sa,Semedo plus others were exceptional.
Lemina however was on a different planet.
As a unit we now seem to have a never-say- die mentality which is a joy to watch.
It’s been a while since I’ve enjoyed watching football this much.
I agree with all the well earned complements showered on Lemina, but for me the epitome of this pack is Jao Gomez.
His work rate is phenomenal; he covers every blade of grass on the pitch, and tackles with a ferocious determination rarely seen in todays game. If a brick all was in the way he would likely run right though it !!
Couple this with the fact that he`s still very young and has no little skill and we`re likely going to have a true world class footballer on our hands for many seasons to come. For all of our sakes, please change your spots Mr Shi and resist the temptation to cash in.
Well for once I got the score right courtesy of their late goal though shame for Sa not getting a clean sheet.
But the loss of Neto in particular, again, means we have no attack left.
We are in dire straits with what GON can put on the bench.
He has performed miracles so far this season and should , but won’t, win manager of the season.
The face of adversity 1 wolves 2 ,I just don’t know how we keep doing this ,think Ran might be playing the Cunha role next
The one positive thing about Neto injury is it will put a lot of teams off ,the negative is they’ll want the price reduced
Think it’s going to be very much like the Tesco game next week
Is Mario the new Mike Bailey
Wolves under Gary have learned a new discipline – finding a way to win regardless of adversity and they did it again today scoring twice without an experienced striker in sight. Well done again all today.
But the reason we have to battle against the odds so often is that we are being held to ransom by EPL FFP regulations. Isn’t it strange that that any club who might be seen to threaten the status quo (cartel) is threatened with sanctions while Man City and Chelsea’s alleged misdemeanours remain in limbo seemingly indefinitely. Yet Everton apparently are under threat of two points deductions in one season; we were forced into a fire sale last summer and are still on the borderline, Notts Forest are involved in some spurious investigation and now Villa and even EFL leaders Leicester (who had the audacity to win the PL a few years ago) are under the microscope.
It;s becoming quite clear that the the so called Premier League is actually an organization run by and on behalf of the self appointed big 6 and even Saudi petro dollars (Newcastle Utd) can’t break into the now institutionalised “it’s our club and you aren’t getting in”.
If this juggernaut isn’t stopped by whatever meas necessary then all our posts, trips to Molineux etc will become meaningless because as soon as anyone who starts to look threatening they will be sanctioned. And if you actually CAN’T win anything what’s the bloody point of it all because true competition in our beloved national sport is disappearing in front of our eyes and we are fighting for scraps like third rate European also ran competitions.
Urgent coordinated action needed by proper not plastic football supporters before its too late. The beast of 1992/3 needs to be slain and real competition restored.
PJB This Fair play rule is, as you say, nothing more than a very bad joke, created to provide inequality so that the interests of the few are favored. But there is a solution.
My home has been in the US for the past twenty years,. I have no real affinity for grid iron football, but the NFL does have a great rule which ensures genuine equality. and real competition .
Namely the salary cap.
With this system management has choices as to how to distribute monies available. Either they can pay huge amounts to a few supposedly great players and then have to make do with players with much lesser ability to make up the remainder of the team. Or they can distribute more evenly.
But either way, in practice no longer can all the best players be drawn by way of massive salaries / bonuses to play for the top three of four teams. And so all teams in the competition have realistic chances of success. The team that wins does so by being the best coached and / or organized, not by boasting the best players in the world because no one else can afford them.
Adoption of this salary cap system would at a stroke take away the need for a complex method of calculation to determine who is falling foul of the rules — rules which no club seems to really understand –which, quite clearly, are set up to favor the supposed big clubs at the expense of all others. And we would have a competition in which the result every year can no longer be forecast in advance, making for more exciting seasons for every club and its fan base
But it won`t happen because the organisation which runs the Premier league appears to be basically corrupt and will probably take all steps necessary to maintain the status quo . And there, in a nutshell, lies the problem
Since the UK is no longer in the EU, maybe they won’t be forced to abide by EU rulings.
Or they can cheat their way around the rules like New England did… giving Brady backdoor money through their “foundation”
But otherwise, yes, this is the only possible route to league parity and is one of the very few redeeming qualities of the NFL.
Most of the outlay is the price of buying players rather than the salary. I don’t disagree with you but a salary cap would not level the field but it would be a start.
Happy. But the point is that ultra greedy world megastars would be unwilling to sign for clubs the biggest of clubs absence of mega salaries. So all the better players would no congregate in the same place.
The NFL salary cap has its own drawbacks as I’m sure you’re aware. Namely “tanking” for draft position and owners who aren’t incentivized to put a competitive product on the field. But there is far more more parity and no such thing as “transfer fees”.
Couldn’t agree more
Pjb
What you are saying PJB is why are Chelsea and Man C continuing to avoid sanctions whilst other clubs are . I agree with you. When will they be held accountable?
Character right through the team.
Bring on a more than useful Cov City.
Make no mistake. This was a brilliant win against a side in good form. This is a team and manager currently on the ascendancy. Let’s take the positives whilst they exist. We are Wolves. For what it’s worth Super Mario , Gomes and RAN were stand outs for me today. FWAW
RAN looked amazing. All over the field. Confident on the ball. Amazing effort by him.
We need him to strategically pull a hammy to turn off buyers.
What a game.
Semedo is having a fabulous year too.
Well how about that then !
Fulham were on a roll and we stopped it in its tracks !
The overload on the right against semedo was apparent yet again and almost cost us , this needs sorting out asap, but fortunately they didnt see it was our Achilles and talking about achilles paulina should have walked after that second tackle.
ait was a star always has been and due to our open minded manager is truly finding his feet magic to come there definately.
mario another player being allowed to blossom gaz just sees it with all of them what a find he is.
fa cup wembley no probs .
forget europe we dont need that crap .
what gaz and his team have achieved with the meagre resources available is remarkable.
To say the least.
Lemina just keeps going. He had nothing left after the final whistle, which is why he’s fast becoming, if he isn’t already, a favourite.
RAN and Semedo also were everywhere. I don’t think there was anyone who didn’t put their heart and soul into thar match.
I was late getting tickets so sat in the Steve Bull Lower. We MUST stop giving this to away fans. Had a great view of the game (Row F block 7/8) including some tricky work by Joao Gomes. Put away fans in the North Bank quadrant. Sorry if this means taking a few more seats from Wolves fans but the current default gives fans of away teams too much influence over the game.
Enjoyed the journey back to London.
What an incredible performance once again by this Wolves team under GON losing Belgarde was bad after two minutes but Neto just before half time. It is miraculous how the hell were in eigtht place with such a small squad is justification on Matt Hobs behalf intrusting in GON let’s hope he signs a new deal please.
This team is the gift that keeps on giving!
Mario is definitely the new Neves.
Not interested in Europe, that is a step too far, but the FA Cup would be fantastic, as I was ten when I watched the last one in 1960. 🙂
Absolutely agree on Europe , Aquilador.
Playing average European teams seems a fruitless activity.
We do not need more games. We find it hard enough to cope with the current fixture list. Also, at present, we do not have the resources needed for yet more games.
Sorry I totally disagree, the last time in Europe was absolutely brilliant for the fans and to repeat the experience would be immense
Fair enough Manxwolf, good for the fans maybe, but exhausting for our small squad and that fatigue could spill over into the league games, thus rendering our hold in the Premiership less tenable.
Which would you rather have? I know what I I’d be happy with… exactly what we have right now. Life at WV1 is good at the moment. Let’s not be greedy. ?
What a fantastic show today. This is entertainment. The atmosphere inside Molineux, and the bond between O’Neil, his staff, the players (group) and the fans is a joy to witness. Fans were asking ‘we’ve got no recognised forwards, where are the goals going to come from?’ Well, Rayan At Nouri and Nelson Semedo obviously! Of course we’re struggling with injuries but if Cunha is coming back soon, who knows, we may well have a full strength squad for the F A Cup Final that I’m beginning to think is a distinct possibility. ‘The fans can dream’ Thanks Gary!
Tie Gary down, ran, will like neto be gone in summer, wolves aie we!
I’m no expert but could Hugo come back in at left wing back and let Ait Nouri play up front ?
He is becoming Messi-esque, aside from the finishing which will surely come, hopefully.
Also, as disappointed as I was with the way JLO deserted us, we are probably indebted to him for some of the signings made during his tenure. If they were down to him, that is.
Three magnificent points, against all the odds.
Pedro Neto is being chased by all the clubs who don’t seem to be affected by FFP rules in spite of spending squillions over the past few seasons.
If that’s the case, what price Ait Nouri, Semedo, Gomes, Doyle?… well, you could list all of the players that featured today.
And, most of all, that battling, lung busting, turbo charged beast that goes by the name of:-
Mari, Mario
Mari, Mario
Mari, Mario
Mario Lemina.
What a man!
All lead by Gary O’Neil.
What a manager!
https://youtu.be/SMtAGQb0dqs
Fantastic result…man of the match Jose Sa He won this on his own with 3 absolutely blinding saves how the score could of been different..
Ait Nouri a secret weapon striker against Coventry ?.come on Gary get us to Wembly nxt week !..you can do this…
COYW
Agree with the comments about Ait Nouri being moved higher up the pitch. We have strength in depth at the back. Hugo(unlucky not to have played more) could play left back, so could Toti with Santi coming into the back 3 after some good performances.
Going further, Mario could and is sometimes playing in advanced positions. Again we have strength in central midfield. It would get Tommy Doyle into the starting 11 as you can’t drop the brilliant pairing of Gomes and Lemina.
I hope GON won’t risk Cuhna and gives him another 2 weeks before Villa. We will be still be favourites to overcome a decent Coventry team even without 4 frontline strikers.
What a season. I thought we would be battling it out with the likes of Everton, Bournemouth and Forest not Newcastle, West Ham and Brighton!
Great credit to the whole squad and the management team!!
I enjoy sitting in the Steve Bull Upper amongst the retired North & South Bankers, we love making a noise but don’t jump around as much anymore. It’s a pain getting out of the stand usually, it’s a slow shuffle in a crowded space, exits locked is probably illegal , God help us if there’s an emergency and why?
Because it is deemed too dangerous for us to mix with visiting supporters downstairs.
What a joy it is to have young supporters with families in the Lower tier, the atmosphere is better and those upstairs can get out and be on their way. This must be part of the future plan…..along with…. keep the manager and his staff and all the players who are currently doing the one thing we all cherish….making us proud.
This journey just keeps getting more amazing week by week.
It’s all been said above along with the plaudits rightly handed to Lemina, AirNouri, Gomes, Semedo, Sa, Doyle, Neto … well everyone really..
I was pretty miffed with yesterday’s useless official… no yellows for some pretty crude tackles .. including the one on Bellegarde .. only for him to book BoaMorte for gobbing off at the fourth official … even Paulhino.. our coveted target, should have had 2 yellows… but hey .. it mattered not in the end.
Well done boys … let’s re-energise those overworked limbs and minds into another required huge effort needed for Coventry next week ..
One game at a time … we’re going to need everyone for next week ..
If our injury list doesn’t send some serious messages to Shi and Hobbs to get more quality personnel on board for next year then flogging the boys like this is unsustainable…
If this latest win highlighted anything, it is this.
The Head Coach has no shortage of tactical skill, and seems adept at making the necessary changes in any given situation.
But more than that, perhaps more important than that, as has been said many times, it is the team spirit, bond and attitude that makes the difference and gives the squad the belief, confidence and determination to
deliver.
Those strengths, coupled with a transformed recruitment approach means our future looks brighter by the week.
And yesterday, so many stand out performances, Lemina, Gomes, Sa, Bueno, Kilman, the whole team. And of course, MOTM Rayan Ait-Nouri.
No first team front line, no problem. 2 more goals.
Let’s get the gaffer’s contract sorted ASAP.
UTW
What a Saturday!!
Wolves won, England won and the jocks got walloped in Rome, hope our pet scotsman stuwolf still visits our blog.
Thinking back, it’s difficult to remember our team, any team, having a more full blooded, total commitment to the cause. To give 110% is supposed to be impossible, but that’s what I saw by the men in Old Gold all over the pitch yesterday. We fans responded in the only way we could and together we created an almost tangible unity which carried our heroes over the line to a deserved victory.
Mario Lemina. He took the buckling of swashes to a whole new level with his nonstop bust a gut, performance.
Rayan Ait-Nouri. Fantastic ball skills coupled with the willingness to cover every blade of grass made him a contender for MOTM.
Santi Bueno. Started in defence and looked calm and completely at home. Balon Dawson, as good as he is, will find it hard to win back his place.
Joao Gomes. Fabulous performance from a young player who is already hammering at the door marked ‘World Class’.
I could go on but every man jack of them deserves maximum credit. Mr O’Neil deserves maximum credit too for bringing us fans to this point in time when almost nothing seems unachievable if we can keep our key assets.
Golden era before us? The signs are decidedly positive.
All this talk of the club having to sell 1 or 2 of our starters to raise funds to improve the team due to the ridiculous and unfair FFP constraints.
There is no way l would sell Kilman, Gomes (more valuable than Pedro?) and RAN who have all been linked to ‘Top 6′ clubs.
Even Neto. With his injury record there is no way we will get the £70-80m he is probably worth. They may offer £50 with add ons. No chance, so keep him!
Instead sell Podence, Silva, maybe finally Guedes (although l know he is on a long lucrative contract). I think we just need a centre forward and a winger.
Recall some of the loanees e.g. Chiquinho and especially Mosquera (so we don’t need a new centre half, now we know Santi is good enough). We send too many players out on loan when they could supplement the squad.
Let’s keep this brilliant group together. This has the potential to be a more exciting time than during the wonderful’ Nuno era’!!
Great result, never in doubt really.
So there’s a chap who has made quite a name for himself as a pub quizmaster who happens to be a big Coventry city fan, we got to the pub at the music stage of the quiz and nailed it , if I say so myself, and only one Taylor swift question too.
Anyway, once he realised there was a wolf in his den , we had a few chats in between questions about next week, both of us agreeing that we should progress but that they like to play counter attacking football too so it could be a cagey affair.
Well the banter finished with him expressing his desire to smash the yam yams , which got me thinking! What do we call Coventry?
I’m not saying that they are irrelevant, I remember walking across that park on the way to games at their old ground and it could be a bit dodgy if you didn’t time it well.
They were a proper top flight team for a long time but I can’t really recall them being rivals, just the sky blues I guess,
It doesn’t matter too much really, we will stuff em proper and then it’s on to our first of two Wembley fixtures.
Utmw
Like you Marney, I hope we progress like the rest of us. But for some perverse reason I have had a soft spot for Coventry since we both got promoted in 1967 even though they pipped us to the Second Division title.
No, I can’t explain it either.
But if we have to lose to anyone, I’d rather it was them.
Great to see Fraser leading the line – how are our young players going to get better if we don’t give them a chance?
Not much to add to the above, but I’m concerned about the number of goals we concede in injury time. Didn’t cost us yesterday but has done in the past.
A minor quibble though and a great win!
On Facebook a range rover with a number plate of SP21 URS.
The first comment is I bet the car has no cup holders.
PPG UPDATE. Safety line still at 31 points. Forest defeat means they are on for 32/33 points so definitely in the mix. Wolves on target for 55/56 points. 7th place currently looking likely around 58/59 points. Euro still a possibility but as pointed out before we have some very difficult away games coming up. Perhaps only Arsenal at home is not one you would say was a home banker. The others are Wham. Palace. Bournemouth. Luton. I suggest six wins from the final 10 could see us in Euro ! Luton game in hand coming up in mid week could make the position clearer in the basement. It is Bournemouth away.
Watched the Arsenal game and seems they are immune to yellow cards for kicking the ball away
Also how come Fulham paid 18 mill for Palinha it was supposedly too much for us but we stumped up 28mill for the mercenarie Guedes
Don’t think the reason Wolves didn’t sign Palinha for £18m was anything to do with the price. He’s a liability as Fulham have discovered.
Mind the gap.
When we play aston villa nil the thug will be suspended.
He wont have the opportunity to keep man handling Dawson in the box.
Wonderful to read the comments above. Apparently we have several candidates for Man of the Match. Happy days.
There was a glorious and brief high point in Nuno’s reign, but I believe we have already reached that, and Gary is just getting started…
I believe that most , if not all , of our first team could be targets for other clubs, as has been noted above by several contributors.
Ideally, none will be sold . We are told that the club does not need to sell for FFP reasons.
However, we also know from past experience that more often than not, once a player’s
head has been turned by a top six club offering megabucks, some players want out.
We all understand that careers are short lived and an injury can end a career.
Perhaps it is understandable in today’s game, loyalty to a club no longer figures. Fine words accompany departures , but departures are often precipitated by agents , TV pundits, the player’s family , and ,to a lesser extent , by YouTube hacks.
We understand that for wannabe top players clubs like Wolves provide a stepping stone to greater riches and status. That is not unreasonable . Some players prove to be the exception. Neves remained at Wolves for a few years before moving for an eye watering wage,
Some players , however, down tools, absent themselves and find ways of throwing their toys out of the pram in order to force a move. Fletcher and Nunes come to mind.
Regarding our present squad, there seems to be an abundance of character.
There are no Prima Donnas or Big Time Charlies. In fact they all appear to be reasonable, likeable men.
Those responsible for recruitment , transfers out and in , have my admiration.
They have a challenging summer ahead.
One big draw , either to come or leave Wolves, must be the culture which Gary O’Neill
has developed this season. He is clearly an intelligent man and has the respect of
all of the staff at Wolves. I am confident that whatever changes in personnel are made, he will prepare a squad to compete next season in The Premier League.
“I believe that most , if not all , of our first team could be targets for other clubs, as has been noted above by several contributors”
Your first paragraph (above) can only be good news! I’d be worried if none were targets. Realistically, we will sell Neto for around £60mil and reinvest well. There’s a feeling he’s injury prone though.