New mentality, new Wolves

While Leicester and Ipswich probably provided harder tests for Wolves, I think it was the win at Peterborough that was the most important.

They hadn't picked up a single point this season, and the Wolves have old may have typically given them their first points. They would have put in a turgid, lifeless performance and left us all miserably. Instead, Solbakken's Wolves put in a confident and strong performance and we had our third win in succession.

The mentality of the team has been talked about by Stale, and he has mentioned how in the Cardiff game we looked like we had accepted that we may lose the game and how we should never do this. We aren't there yet but we have gone a long way to creating this. Too much in the Premier League we set up in the hope that we may nick a point and it cost us in the end.

Most interestingly however, was an article I saw the other day on the Express and Star website. It was about the Sports Psychologist we had brought in, David Young. Stale had this to say.

“David Young has come in with us (the first team) after working with the club for a while.
“I’m always very suspicious about these kinds of people coming in and saying ‘this victory is down to me!’ or that we have to do something else because we lost a game.
“But this guy has really impressed me. I tested him for quite a few weeks to see if he’s really useful and he is very useful. He understands the game and he understands sport and athletes, so he will help us for a day or two a week."

I had read somewhere a while back that we sacked our psychologist before last season, and perhaps that contributed in a small way to our downfall. After a storming start to the season it took one slip by Berra at the back against Spurs for it to vanish. We were never the same; throwing away leads instantly, go in to games ridiculously negatively and never show any confidence on the ball.

Of course a psychologist isn't everything to do with it, but with Stale you can see he is leaving no stone unturned and wants everything to be right. His attention to detail is rather impressive.

Terry Connor leaves Wolves

"Terry Connor’s contract as Assistant Manager of Wolves has today been terminated with immediate effect."

The opening line from Wolves' statement on the official website.

I was expecting this to happen eventually, but for him to be sacked so suddenly and quickly into the Solbakken regime really is a surprise for me.

It's sad to see after 13 years loyal service, two promotions and four Premier League seasons but in the end, I think this is the right decision. We need a fresh start, and I reckon Stale is trying to give the players a wake up call and get them to move on.

Not that Terry is a bad coach, he is quite clearly a good one. Liked by all the players and as Mick said not long ago on TV, 'put ona great training session'. I'm sure he will be missed around the club.

Thank you Terry for your service, I have not a single bad word to say about you and I hope we will see you at Molineux with your new club soon (with Mick?)

Welcome to Wolves, Razak Boukari!

Wolves have announced the signing of Razak Boukari, winger from Rennes on a four year contract. He joins Tongo Doumbia in joining from the French club, for a reported fee of around £3m.

It's nice to see we have acted swiftly to replace Jarvis (Boukari will wear number seventeen too!), because it's clear what some of the problems were against Derby on Saturday. From videos and reports, Boukari is a quick, strong winger who likes to attack his full back.

Also joining is Georg Margreitter a centre back (yes, you read correctly) from Austria Vienna. Only 23, Georg has played at u21 level for Austria and a couple of years ago won the best young player in Austria award. You'd assume that he will go in next to Roger Johnson straight away, and with Stearman and maybe still Berra as back up I think we are okay in that area for now.

It doesn't look like we will be stopping there either. Stale has hinted at more signings this week and one player we've been strongly linked with (some sources saying he is almost a Wolves player) is Bakary Sako, a wide midfielder from St. Ettiene. With Hunt and Hammill allowed to leave, this makes perfect sense really as two wingers and young Forde isn't enouh for a long gruelling season. 

What position or player would you like us to be looking at signing now? Comment below.

Tough test for Stale

Around 10 days left of the window, and it seems that we have finally accepted offers for Matt Jarvis and Steven Fletcher. Around £24 million for the pair is decent business, and will allow us to get in replacements and strengthen in positions we need.

First of all, thank you to the lads who are leaving us. It was disappointing that Fletcher put in a transfer request but he's been a fantastic player for us, and I've really enjoyed watching him. Sunderland have got themselves a top forward. With Matty, it's a bit sadder. We signed him for 600 thousand 5 years ago, and he's always been a key player for us. From league one to England international, we've certainly played a part in his career and he is someone who I will always watch with interest.

Bolanos

Moving on, the days coming up to the end of the window are going to be important and a test of Stale. We need reinforcements, but they need to be the right ones and not panic buys. I would expect the priorities to be a centre half (as Stale has talked about) and a winger. We've been unsuccessful in attempts for Demidov and Geromel, so it's proved tougher than expected in that area. Looking at a winger replacement for Jarvis, we've been linked with Christian Bolanos and Thomas Ince. Bolanos I don't know a lot about, but he does have a year left on his contract and Stale signed him for Copenhagen. Ince I would be delighted if we signed, he would fit the role of a narrow wide player very well. He's a clever footballer and very skillful.

If we could sort those areas out quickly, maybe then we could look at another striker, and a right or left back. I'm not particularly comfortable with Zubar at right back (we do have Foley to return from injury), nor Ward defensively. Oscar Wendt and Bryan Oviedo are both players Stale may be interested in at left back, while we've also been linked with right back Espen Ruud.

It is going to be very interesting to see how Stale approaches the next few days, but I trust him to get it right.

We are back: Wolves 3 Barnsley 1

What a great night.

In the build up to the game, I was excited, but nervous. And I think so were the players. Until the first goal there were a few nervous moments in front of our own goal and we didn't keep the ball great. But when Stephen Ward intercepted, played a one two with Ebanks-Blake and coolly slotted home we really were up and running.

It was a brilliant moment, and the man who started the scoring had a very good game. A bit shaky defensively but he was one of our main threats going forward, and he could have had more than just the one goal!

Our confidence rose in a fifteen minute spell that saw us control the game and play some excellent football. Peszko and Jarvis linked well in their narrower roles and our full backs got forward to good effect.

Our two strikers were much improved too, due to better service and more space around them to play in. Sylvan was particularly impressive, defenders bouncing off him and he looked a real threat whenever he was in a forward position. He fully deserved his goal, a cool finish after a brilliant chipped pass by Doyle. Doyler had a tough time on Saturday but last night he was much improved. He moved the ball, got into good positions and was unlucky not to score. He badly needs one.

Most impressive for me was Roger Johnson, my man of the match. You can really see who is marshaling the back four, he reminded me of the start of last season when you could hear him bellowing instructions and if Stale needs some to organise the defence (and the particularly impressive offside trap we played) he's got a good 'un in Roger. I don't think he lost a single header in the second half.

Still plenty to work on but this was very encouraging and it was just nice to actually win!

Now for Derby, who we can certainly beat if we play the same way and with the same enthusiasm.

5 things to think about...

1. The defence is still as poor as ever

It looks like it will take longer than we initially thought to sort the defence out. Zubar was atrocious, Ward looked disheartened, and Stearman and Johnson looked like lost little boys and barely talked throughout the game. With Foley still to return, I think we will at least two defensive reinforcements.

2. Stale has found some gems

Man mountain

First of all, Doumbia was by far the best player on the pitch. Quick, strong, comfortable in possession and rarely got caught in it either. He's going to be a HUGE player for us. Slawomir Peszko, while short of match fitness, gave us an extra dimension on the right and Sigurdarson also looks a clever player, but also needing games to get up to speed.

3. We have a safe pair of hands for now

I was worried that with Hennessey injured and Dorus de Vries wanting away, Carl Ikeme might not be up to the job for the time being but this was a confident performance from him. he came and collected crosses, his kicking was fine and he made a couple of decent saves.

4. Sylvan looks hungry, Doyle doesn't 

I was disappointed that it was SEB who was taken off ahead of Kevin Doyle. Sylvan showed some good movement, linked up player as well as Doyle did and was also doing a decent job of occupying the forwards. Kevin Doyle however, aside from a bright start, was very poor. He still looks short of confidence.

5. There's still another 45 league games to go!

For those feeling downbeat, relax! It wasn't a great performance but there were signs that we could knock the ball about competently. It's going to take time, but we will get there with hard work and patience. if we get behind the lads they will produce.
 

Midfield madness

One of the most interesting things about this summer is how Stale handles a midfield headache.

Currently we have SEVEN first team centre midfielders. When we went into the summer break, you'd have thought that maybe a couple (like Guedioura and Milijas) would have gone by now, but Guedioura is unlikely to go to a Forest side looking set to appoint Mick McCarthy and Milijas is said to be rated by Stale.

O'Hara - too good for this league if fit

We also have Karl Henry, one of the first names on the team sheet over the last few years and Jamie O'Hara, who travels to Ireland with the squad, who is almost back to full fitness. Then there is David Davis and Dave Edwards, both players I felt impressed in a difficult situation towards the end of last season. Finally, poor Eggert Jonsson, bought as 'one for the future', thrown in the deep end and barely seen again. I actually think he's a tidy footballer, who might be a useful Ward-style squad player.

But how does our new boss go about this 'problem' if we call it that?

He is said to be a 4-4-2 man, with two deep centre midfielders, two wide midfielders who tuck inside and a forward who drops off the other. So it's possible that five of the seven mentioned could miss out (or only two!) more if Stale decides to bring his own man in!

Davis Davis - never looked out of his depth for us

Does he play the likes of Dave Edwards or Adlene Guedioura wide? Both have done a job there for us under Mick, and played a part in some important wins but is that enough? Jamie O'Hara is an other option.

The same players have also take turns playing off a striker. Edwards has probably had the most success there, but O'Hara struck a decent partnership with Kevin Doyle before.


In the deeper positions, all of them can play there, to a certain degree. Guedioura starred there for Nottingham Forest last season in the Championship, will Stale have seen that? Karl Henry, David Davis and Nenad Milijas would appear to be the main three battling for that position though.

And Eggy, with his neat haircut? Maybe he can play at the back?

Perhaps we should just leave it to Mr.Solbakken.

What do you think our midfield will look like?

Wolves sign Nouble

We've made our first official signing of the summer!

Sadly it comes in the quite underwhelming shape of 20 year old forward Frank Nouble, who had been released by West Ham in May.

He's made limited appearance for the Hammers and been on loan to various clubs.

I sense Wolves fans won't be impressed, as the consensus is that he's quite a poor footballer but I think we need to make sure we give him the backing he need to progress here. He's strong and quick, and you never know, he may be the 'Vokes' of the 08/09 season. Someone who can come on and offer something different.

On Vokes, it wouldn't surprise me if he is the first forward to leave Molineux. As Nouble will come in as the young back up player (which is strange enough with Cassidy, Winnall and McLinden all looking to get a chance) I can see Sam leaving us for good. I've always rated him, and he scored some important goals but I think it would be best for him to leave. He needs more stability to progress into the good footballer he could become.

This could be the beginning of a busy summer, with the signing of Bjarn Siguardarson looking to happen halfway through July. Hopefully there are more ins than outs!

Fixtures released

Wolves will start their 2012/13 Championship campaign with a tricky game at Neil Warnock's Leeds! Ståle will have his work cut out, Elland Road being a tough place to go, but against a Warnock team will be a taste of things to come, him being the ultimate Championship manager (along with Mick!). 


After that we play Barnsley at home, and play our first ever game at Cardiff's new stadium following another home game against Derby. Not an easy start, but if Ståle has us ready by then then we could definitely get off to a good start. 


Derby games against managerless Birmingham are on December the 8th and April the 1st, both sure to be spicy games and in all likeliness on tele.


We finish the season with games against Charlton away, Burnley at home and finally Brighton away. 


You can get all the fixtures on the Wolves website here: http://www.wolves.co.uk/page/Fixtures?WT.mc_id=fixrel1806

Who can Ståle re-ignite?

It's going to be interesting to see who Ståle Solbakken rates, and even more so who he bins off straight away. For example, will he have the same love for Stephen Ward? When the going gets tough, will he bring in Jody Craddock? Most of all, there are players who badly needed this change, to get the Wolves careers back on track. Here are some:

Adam Hammill
On reading about the way Ståle's team likes to play, one thing came up plenty of times. He likes his wingers to drift in, letting the full backs bomb forward round the outside. Much like Michael Kightly, this will really suit Adam Hammill's style. We know he likes to bring out a trick or two, but we are yet to see him really produce in quality consistently in a match. We know, like other players in our squad, that he can star in this league.

Ronald Zubar
As painful as it was to watch Zubar as the season went on, I think he could have a role to play next season, if he is still there. His shocking positional sense and lack of defensive nous won't be shown up as much and as mentioned above, Ståle likes to have his full backs getting forward. With some decent coaching, it's possible that Ronald might, just might be an important player for us next season.

Ebanks-Blake is Wanderer's number 9

Sylvan Ebanks-Blake
There is no better feeling than when Sylvan scores for me. The man who fired us into the Premier League has had a tough time in the last three years, showing glimpses of the striker we adore. Back in the Championship, he could become the main man again and given decent service, he WILL score goals.


Nenad Milijas
Another thing I picked up on reading through Copenhagen fans' views on Ståle, was that in his 4-4-2 system, the two centre midfielders sit very deep, allowing the other four to get on with he attacking duties. For technical ability, and a football brain Nenad is probably the best we have and I think he has thrived in the deep lying play maker role when we have attempted to keep the ball. A move back abroad wouldn't surprise me, but I'm a big fan of Milijas and think he would be way too good for the Championship.

Others like Adlene Guedioura and Jamie O'Hara could also be big players under Solbakken. Both will be desperate to win the Wolves fans back over and with their quality, could find a year in the Championship a nice confidence booster.

There will be ins and outs, but I get the feeling there will be players who are like 'new signings' for Ståle.

What has happened to Kevin Doyle?

"I won't make a rash decision on my future. Ideally I would love to be back playing in the Premier League but also I don't want to be relegated again. I would rather have a year in the Championship fighting to be promoted."

Things can change very quickly in nearly a year.
On July the 3rd last year the Internet went mad when Arsenal were heavily linked with a £12m move for Kevin Doyle. In an article about it, even suggested asking for £15 million for him. 


Now we will be lucky to get £5m for him and with him saying he doesn't want to play for a team in a relegation battle, it looks like he will be set to stay at Molineux for at least another year.


The question is, will we see the Kevin Doyle of old, or the one we've seen this season? 

he was worth every penny of the £6.5m we spent on him, as he hustled and bustled his way to keeping us in the Premier League in  his first year. In fact, watching Didier Drogba in the Champions League really reminded me of those performances from Doyler in 2009/10, Liverpool at home sticking out. The next started slowly for him but when he got going we improved as a team and looked set to stay up. His injury nearly cost us our Premier League status until the three Stephens (Hunt, Ward and Fletcher) fought to keep us up.

Since then, good performances from Kevin have been limited. The goals have dried up even more, and he has looked lethargic at times. Why? 

I noticed this season that Mick was careful with Fletcher, resting him (especially over the Christmas period). It seemed that he had realise what he had done to Doyle, burning him out and running him ragged on his own up front. His confidence dropped and he began to pick up more and more injuries. 

If Ståle can reignite him, and we can see him back to his old self then he will surely be too good for the Championship, and strengthen our chances of an instant return to the Premier League. He was a joy to watch as he twisted and turned defenders, pulling them apart and running them ragged. 

Let's hope Ståle thinks the same. 

Wolves appoint Solbakken

As of July 1, Ståle Solbakken will take over as manager of Wolves. And although before yesterday I knew nothing about him at all, I'm quite excited! 


We've moved swiftly to get the man we wanted, it's our first (proper) foreign appointment and he has had a lot of success in his short time as a manager. 


It would be silly to ignore his time at Cologne this season, but as many know the manager's job there is something of a poisoned chalice, and he had plenty of problems to contend with. 

He's got no hair, but we don't care

Listening to the Norwegian correspondent talking to Sky Sports News, he spoke of his attractive, attacking football, something that will certainly please the home faithful. A passionate character (look at the video below), he certainly seems like someone that if it goes well, Wolves fans will like him a lot. 


The players reaction to it all will be interesting. An up and coming foreign manager with experience of winning titles may convince the likes of Fletcher, Jarvis etc that it may be worth it to stick around for another year. How he deals with Roger Johnson will certainly be something to look at, as my guess is he probably doesn't know that he has (apparently) been a disruptive influence on the dressing room harmony. 


He'll have been briefed on the young players we have by Morgan for sure, Matt Doherty and Danny Batth the main ones that may be in the fight for first team positions. 


And in a way, I'm pleased that Terry Connor looks like he will still be at the club. Ståle will in all likelihood bring in some of his own men in, but having Terry there may be good as he can help them adapt to English football, and get to know the players. 


I'm not even bothered that it could go all wrong because for once we look to have a young, modern football manager who could possibly, take us onto a new level.

Endless ball of energy

I never really understood Dave Edwards while we were in the Championship. 

He didn't seem to offer any qualities there, and when we were playing him ahead of David Jones I couldn't fathom why. 

But since our return to the Premier League, I've generally been impressed by him.

He offers us what none of our others seem to have had this season, when we've been having a stinker (this has been the case in pretty much every single game) not many have stood up and been counted. But Edwards, alongside a couple of others have never stopped running, chasing lost causes or trying to get us back in the game. This was exemplified last Saturday at Swansea. 

Even Tony Gale was full of praise for him, claiming he had changed the game. And he had, he'd got us flying, playing some fantastic football, linking play with the wingers and forwards (perfect case is his goal to make it 4-3). 

It makes me laugh that he has been the main target of criticism when really, alongside Kightly, he has been our best player recently. It makes a mockery of the idea that Wolves fans don't mind if they aren't good enough, just as long as they care. We've seen that with Neill Collins, Stephen Ward and Karl Henry already though.

Of course has had some poor games, but no more than any other player, if not less. Arsenal at home he was extremely poor but under TC, I can't think of any other games where you would say 'Edwards was rubbish'.

He will, sadly, always lack the star quality. His finishing does let him down, as does his passing at times. It's just sad that he has to suffer the abuse while others get off scot-free. 

I'm not sure I'd even have him in my team next year, with hopefully Adlene Guedioura coming back and Jamie O'Hara returning to full fitness, but at least we'll know we've got someone who can come in as back up, because he can certainly 'put a shift in' from time to time. 

Get behind Dorus

Maybe it's a bit late to be trying to get this going, but I only thought of this when I remember that we had a game tomorrow, at Swansea.

It's rather unfortunate that the few games Dorus de Vries gets to play in the Premier League are when we are relegated and even worse, one of them is against the team's he left saying this:

"Wolves are a club with all the fundamentals in place to grow and expectations are higher than at Swansea at this moment in time."

Obviously, he's going to get his fair share of stick from the home crowd at the Liberty stadium, so I'm urging anyone who goes to get behind Dorus, in full voice! I'll leave others to get a chant going, because I'm clearly not creative enough to think of one... 

It will be a nice confident booster, not that he seems to need it. 

I was struck by the confidence he showed on his Premier League debut. His distribution was excellent, he made two excellent saves and even when he flapped at a corner he seemed confident about it! 

If Wayne Hennessey leaves in the summer, I won't be too disappointed as we have a good goalkeeper ready to come in. If not, then there will be an interesting battle to happen between the two for sure! 

Please share this with other fans heading up for our first European away game for a while! 

Miracle day!

On the same day that Andy Carroll scored the winning goal in an FA Cup semi final for Liverpool, Wayne Hennessey and his four defenders did the seemingly impossible. 

They kept a clean sheet.

And after a tough season where we have conceded goals for fun it was quite nice to have at least one more shut out before the end of the season. 

I thought all of the back line had a pretty good game. Berra and Stearman battled hard and long, Wardy support the attack and nullified the threat of Seb 'diver' Larsson but most pleasing was the performance of Kevin Foley, returning from injury. He's had a tough season, but today showed what a class footballer he can be. Tidy on the ball, kept McLean quiet and made some important defensive headers. 

It was nice to see Anthony Forde get his third Premier League start. He looked lost at times and was shrugged off the ball too much for my liking but there were definitely glimpses of what he can offer. He came close with a good driving effort, which would have done wonders for his confidence had it gone in. 

Another youngster David Davis was one of our best players. A bit rash on the ball but strong and powerful in winning it back, which was really nice to see. Next to him in the middle was my man of the match, Karl Henry. Our captain put in a really effective performance. He did what he did best, winning it off a player in dangerous situations, reading a pass or moving the ball on to a wide player. I have a feeling clubs will come in for him in the summer and we will do well to keep him for next season. 

No doubt it was a boring game, not helped by Sunderland looking fairly disinterested at the best of times but had Fletcher's header gone in, or SEB tucked away one of his chances then it would have been deserved, and been a job well done. 

Hennessey - 7

Foley - 8

Stearman  - 7

Berra - 7

Ward - 7

Kightly - 6

Henry - 8

Davis - 7

Forde - 6

Fletcher - 7

SEB - 7

A second away point for Terry Connor, finally, and hopefully we can get some more before the season ends. Hey, maybe we can even end Manchester City's title challenge next? They've only scored ten in their last two games...

A small way to make up for this season

Beating Arsenal tomorrow.

Yep, sounds a pretty mental thing to say in our current form but if there's a team I have wanted to beat the most since we have been in the Premier League, it's these lot.

We've beaten Man United, Man City, Chelsea, Liverpool and Spurs (twice) but the closest we have ever come to winning against Arsenal is the draw we got on boxing day, with Steven Fletcher getting the equaliser.

In fact that game summed up why I really do hate Arsenal. Like two years previously, we had a man sent off for the reaction of the Arsenal fans and players. Had Nenad Milijas made that tackle in the following game against Bolton, he would have barely had a foul given against him.

Most importantly though, it's who the majority of my friends support down south here in London. You can imagine the stick I've got over the years!

On to the game, I'm crapping myself. We've seen since Connor took over how vulnerable we are to a team who can pass the ball well, being picked apart by Fulham and Man United in humiliating thrashings.

So how do we set up for this one?

We've gone 442 in the last three outings and taken the lead in all of themm butd then gone onto lose them. I'm convinced that in this game we will go back to one up top, with two wingers and three central midfielders.

I expect that lone striker to be Steven Fletcher, but I'm hoping it will be Kevin Doyle. 'Fletch' has been anonymous in recent games and if he'd been more livelier, perhaps we could have done better in them. He's a class footballer but he's looked like his mind is somewhere else, unsurprisingly. Doyle I think would bring a bit more energy up front and perhaps more chance of holding onto the ball.

In midfield I think we will go with a trio of David Davis, Karl Henry and David Edwards. Doesn't sound very exciting, but I think it's the best we can go with. Edwards has come in for a lot of stick lately, but I think he's been performing well. He's given us movement in the middle and the desire to win the ball back. With him advanced and Davis and Henry holding, it gives our two wingers license to attack more. And if we are to have any chance of getting anything at all it will be from Kightly and Jarvis, our best two players lately.

I can see TC going with this:

Hennessey

Zubar
Stearman
Bassong
Ward

Kightly
Davis
Edwards
Henry
Jarvis

Fletcher

Anything less than three or four is a bonus, as I can really see us getting torn apart. We need to keep ourselves in the game and have a go at the centre backs, because without Koscielny they are certainly weaker at the back. Let's hope the City game on Sunday took a lot out of them!

Is Morgan on the right track?

When I heard that Steve Morgan and Alan Curbishley didn't 'share the same views', I was mightily pissed off.

Gorman - Ten caps for Northern Ireland

Here we had the chance to get a Premier League proven manager in to rescue our season, and Morgan wanted him to bring the youth team in, instead of giving him a load of money to spend in the summer. It sounded ridiculous back then but as we get nearer and nearer to the Championship, it doesn't seem to be such a bad idea.

We've seen the likes of Matt Doherty, David Davis, Anthony Forde and Johnny Gorman all make their Premier League debuts, it doesn't stop there either. There are plenty of others, such as Zeli Ismail, Jack Price and Liam McLinden.

What caused me to write this article today were these quotes from Scunthorpe manager Alan Knill, where Jamie Reckord is on loan.

“I think he’s got the potential to go all the way,” enthused Knill. “When Mick McCarthy was at Wolves, he said they were thinking about putting Jamie in the team, to play in the Premier League.
“Then he got an injury which knocked him back, but fortunately it meant he could come to us."

 It got me quite excited, not just about him but for that fact that next season, we really should be seeing a lot of our younger players getting a chance.

Is it unrealistic to think that Danny Batth could be one of our first choice centre backs next season? Or that Matt Doherty, who has impressed whenever I've watched him, could stake a claim. Personally, I think he's better than Zubar already!

David Davis - Ready made replacement for Karl Henry

And if Karl Henry were to leave, we've already seen that David Davis can perform at the highest level. He's already shown that he has as much quality as someone like Dave Edwards (who I'm a big fan of, for the record). 

It would be silly to expect all of them to become first team players, but with the sheer amount of good young players we seem to have it's not out of the question to see three, four or five players coming through. How I'd love us to be that team who have a team full of young players brought through our youth system. Least of all, it would be quite exciting to see players playing without fear and giving it their all. 


Morgan and Moxey have come in for a lot of criticism lately (rightly so) but maybe, just maybe they are on the right track on this one.

Shining light

If there's any kind of positive to take from our recent performances, it's the form of Matthew Jarvis.

After a slow start to the season Matty came in for a lot of criticism, he looked a shadow of the man last season who had won our player of the year award and been capped for England.

Since December though, he's slowly improved as the games went by, increasing in confidence and recently he's hit a new level. It's the best I've seen him play.

We all know about his pace, but he is using it even more effectively. Not just waiting to get square on with his full back, he's started turning a running straight at them and causing all sorts of problems for the opposition defenders.

And now he's showing a bit of fire in his belly, whether it be in his goal celebrations or when he is encouraging his fellow team mates.

In the likely situation of relegation, it's hard to believe we can keep him. If we do, it would be massive. If we don't, I think a bidding war would spark. The likes of Liverpool, Villa and Everton's wingers have struggled for a lot of this season, while Tottenham have showed recently that they don't have much in back up for when Lennon or Bale get injured. With Moxey's negotiation powers I could see us getting a decent fee for him.

Then there's the little subject of England.

If he can grab himself a few more goals, and continue to play the way he is with a bit more help from our other attackers I'm sure he could get himself into contention. Looking at the wing options, Walcott and Young stand out as the two current main wingers. Downing has had a poor season too and I would take Jarvis above him at Wolves for sure. Never say never?

I'm getting carried away, but as you can tell I'm delighted that Jarvis is playing so well. In difficult circumstances he is giving is something to be positive about.

Norwich v Wolves preview

With Blackburn hosting a fragile Bolton side, the relegation battle could be about to be cut to four teams. 

And it games like this, at Carrow Road for us, where we prove that we aren't completely down and out and that their is still some fight left in us. 

Fight is exactly what we need right now too. 

Michael Kightly showed it when he came on last weekend in the drubbing at home to Man United. Stearman and Jarvis too. A bit of spirit can be infectious sometimes, so let's hope the rest can get in on the act on Sunday. 

Our opponents have had a fantastic season. Most predicted them to be down there fighting for their lives, but on 36 points, there's nothing for them to worry about anymore. They've played the kind of football Wolves fans dream of seeing. Fast, attacking football with wingers and strikers who fight for their lives and score goals. 

However, their defence is certainly there to be got at. They've made plenty of changes at the back and never really got themselves a proper system at the back, so if we can get the ball to the likes of Jarvis and Kightly in decent areas we may get some joy. That's if we actually have the ball though.

I expect TC to go with this team:

Hennessey

Stearman

Johnson

Bassong

Ward

Kightly

Edwards

Foley

Milijas

Jarvis

Fletcher

Still no Karl Henry, and David Davis out for a few weeks Foley stays in midfield. In the absence of Ronald Zubar, Stearman moves out to right back and Roger Johnson could make his return. I've been very critical of our captain, but this is a chance to prove that the man we bought last summer is a good defender and deserved the plaudits he had received before. I think Kightly has earned himself a place in the team, so out goes Doyle, with Fletcher ahead of him up front. 

This is a very tough game, and it's going to take a very good performance to get anything out of it. After last Sunday, I think we may just produce something. 2-2. 

Go for it?

After Sunday's defeat, things are back to looking gloomy.

Add to that we now have Karl Henry sidelined, and David Davis looking like he will make his Premier League debut, we are in desperate trouble.

Which is why I think it's a case of just going for it now.

In previous seasons, we have bounced back from the low points by giving a strong attacking performance and on Saturday, that is exactly what we need.

How do we go about that though?

First of all, play both Kevin Doyle and Steven Fletcher, in their best positions. Yes that means 4-4-2, but we have hardly looked good with five in midfield recently either! They both have the quality to get us out of this mess and if they can finally start playing well together than it will give us a fighting chance.

Secondly, play Stephen Hunt. I've resisted saying this recently, mainly because I don't really rate our tiny Irish winger! I'm of the opinion that his injury has Hull has taken away any of the pace he had, and he doesn't look fit very often. However, it's games like these that he thrives in. Look at the Birmingham game last season, or against Albion, or against Chelsea. And even if he doesn't offer the quality we need, we know there is no chance he will give up.

Next, the defence. I hate to say this, but I think it's time to bring in good old Jody Craddock to sort it out again. Pair him with Bassong and he doesn't need to worry so much about pace. Jody has the cool head we need at the back right now.

And finally, don't drop off! After spells of pressure, or playing at a good tempo when it doesn't work we drop off and give the impetus back to the other team. We need to be persistant.

There's no doubting how big this game is, but we can't settle for a point, it is MUST WIN.

5 things we learnt at Fulham

I'm don't think I want to say much about the actual 'match' (if we are going to call it that) so I thought I'd talk about 5 things we have learnt today.

1. Jamie O'Hara is a luxury

Karl Henry - more important than some think

Jamie, TC or any coach/player can talk about him playing through the pain if he doesn't even bother trying and plays like an idiot! Unfortunately, we haven't seen Jamie play consistently well for a while, if at all which is a shame because he is obviously a talent, but he is a luxury we can't afford right now, unless he decides to pull his finger out. 

2. Without Henry we crumble

We weren't playing particularly well with Karl today, but as recent results have proved we simply can't handle not having him there. He gets a lot of stick but he is vital to our chances and we have to hope his injury isn't serious, otherwise we are in a huge amount of trouble. 

3. Zubar (a defender), can't defend

After a promising performance last week, Zubar reminded us why we much prefer a host of other defenders to him at right back. He simply went AWOL today and atleast two of the goals came from him not being at right back, his bloody position!!

4. Berra hasn't learnt his lesson. 

After costing us goals with the same mistake against Villa and Newcastle, you'd think Berra would stop being so laid back when he has the ball at the back but no, he tried to give them a goal but letting someone sneak in behind him as he went to clear it. He got lucky this time.

5. Generally, anything good comes through Milijas

The only times we played any good football, Nenad was involved and he was one of the only players to come out of this game with any sort of credit. He has some faults but what he does have is quality and a brain, we really need to use him more and better. 

Agree with my points, think there are more (there are). Comment your views below.

Fulham v Wolves preview

Oh August, what a distant memory you are.

One of the finest performances I've witnessed from Wolves came in our first home game of this season, against Sunday's opponents. Everything seemed to be right, we'd finally got it right with two up front, O'Hara looked fit and Johnson was a rock.

How things have changed since that game.

Good times

We sit 16th now after a horrible run of three wins in twenty four, with a new manager but it looks like things might finally be turning around. An excellent point at St.James's Park (and I will keep calling it that), a solid performance all round and Fletcher, Kightly and Bassong all in contention to start.

After a poor start to the season Fulham have been playing really well lately. Clint Dempsey has scored goals regularly, Moussa Dembele is an unbelievable talent and Bryan Ruiz looks like he is starting to get used to the Premier League. They almost play 4-2-4 at home, something that we need to try and expose instead of letting it be a threat because if we allow them to play like that, we will get punished.

Wayne Hennessey and Kevin Doyle have been declared fit to play after injury scares, which is a bonus. Connor's biggest dilemma is who he starts up front. He has noted that we have found it hard to fit them both in, so it should be one or the other. I think we will go with Doyle up front and Fletcher on the bench, ready to be used as an impact sub. With Sebastien Bassong fit, I think we will see him come in for Christophe Berra. Berra can count himself unlucky after a decent performance, but Terry has said himself he is not afraid to make tough decisions.

Here is how I expect us to go:

Hennessey

Zubar
Stearman
Bassong
Ward

Foley
Henry

Kightly
O'Hara
Jarvis

Doyle

A solid base, but with enough attacking threat to make sure we are in a game. It would be nice to see us go there and try to play again, which is what I think we may do.

Craven Cottage is a very hard place to go, but with our recent away form I will back us for a score draw. 1-1, which would give us a great base to build on for the rest of the season.

From TC to 'Gaffer'

Made a good impression so far

Here's an excellent article written by Phill Chell, giving his views on new boss Terry Connor.


Having been away in Scotland with one of the bands I play in this weekend, I've kind of been out of contact with the world. This was partly due to Jack Daniels and mainly because of the lack of 3G signal in Musselburgh and Gretna.

I was kind of glad in all honesty because of the calamity surrounding the recent managerial issues with my beloved Wolves.

Upon till recently I've always had huge respect for the manner in which Wolves have conducted their business dealings; never revealing transfer fees in or out, never spending money frivolously, having a sensible wage bill (at least in the context of football). We live in a world when material and financial cock-strutting in the norm as is loud-mouthing and bravado. Not for Wolves.

However the manner in which, if what has been written is to be believed, they have conducted the recent managerial hunt and the preamble leading to Mick McCarthy's sacking has been nothing short of an embarrassment.

The alarm bells started ringing for me when Football Focus was broadcast live from Molineux and Jez Moxey said we weren't a hiring and firing club.

Then there was the Liverpool game and the Morgan dressing room incident.

The final nail was the Albion game. Although we lost to them that didn't bother me as much as the manner of the defeat. The rivalry in any part of the country has always been a little lost on me but I'm straying from the pack there so perhaps that will be for another time.

Anyway, Mick was fired, tears were shed, etc. I will be eternally grateful to him for bringing the most success to my 25 years of supporting them. However he had taken the team as far as he could and this is a business were talking about, whether you like it or not and therefor, a decision was made.

Which brings me to the race to replace him and why I think this time, the board got it spectacularly wrong.

It seemed to me a rash decision to get rid of Mick but I naturally assumed they had a replacement ready. We now know this want true. That wasn't the worst thing though; telling the press of the criteria, mentioning a specific person and also asking permission to talk to someone already in a job was a major faux pas. If the candidates then didn't want the job on the terms being offered (which is what happened) we would end up looking stupid (which we did). Where was our usual dignified silence?

Which brings me on to Terry Connor. When I first heard they'd appointed him I almost broke the hotel room door I was in. It was so out of left field I just never saw it coming. I didn't have anything again him but I also didn't know much either.

Once I had digested it somewhat though I began to see the positives. Yes I know that there is a Long line of dead careers of ex Assistant Managers that tried and failed to step up.

However, we support one of the oldest, most passionate and well-respected clubs in the history of Association Football so I believe we have a duty to get behind Terry Connor.

After the game on Saturday I was smiling for the first time in a while. The point wasn't why more so the fact we were 2 nil down and we came back fighting. Yes we got a spot of luck with both goals but I think you'll agree we deserved some luck after the season we've had. Not just that though, it was the interview Terry gave after the match. He had almost lost his voice which I thought was fantastic; he'd given so much from the side lines. The final think that made me smile was the players at the end of the game, how they all thanked him and each other; they had a spring in their step again.

So I for one will be singing Terry's name at the next match I go to. Let's hope a few more do too.

There is one example of an Assistant Manager who has go on to what you could call a fairy successful career. He started life as an interpreter then became coach then AM to a guy called Sir Bobby Robson. The club they were at? Barcelona. His name? Anyone heard of Jose Mourinho? 

Gutsy: Newcastle 2 Wolves 2

Not for the first time (or second, third, fourth etc) this season Wolves were the comeback kings.

It was an all to similar feeling to find ourselves two nil down inside the first twenty minutes. Fortunately though, that was the only real similarity to our season under Mick, as we played some pleasing stuff.

We kept possession, moved it around with a tempo and a purpose, something we have lacked all season as performances have drained fans and our players have lost confidence. We looked fresh, committed and ready to fight for our new manager.

I was impressed with the team selection too. Zubar, Stearman and Berra came into the defence and added some much needed pace at the back, dealing with Ba and Cisse well. Zubar in particular was superb, giving us much needed energy going forward but also defensive stability.

I was just glad to see us play 4-5-1 too, and Kevin Doyle playing up front. He'd obviously been instructed to play more central and be more of a goal threat, and that he was as he got into some great positions and probably should have had more than just the one goal. Too often we've seen him out wide, playing for throw ins but yesterday he looked confident.

With Karl Henry back, and Roger Johnson dropped (correctly, in my opinion) it was a real surprise to see Stephen Ward named as captain. I thought the likes of Kevin Foley and Christophe Berra might be ahead of him but there isn't a player who deserves it more. He put in a good performance, winning some great tackles and making one important block. He almost got a goal too, but his snatched at it a bit with his right foot.

Hennessey - 8

Zubar -8
Stearman - 7
Berra - 7
Ward - 7

Foley - 7
Henry - 7
Edwards - 7
O'Hara - 6
Jarvis - 7

Doyle - 8


That is six games unbeaten away from Molineux, an impressive feat to say the least. We have an away trip to Craven Cottage before a HUGE home game against Blackburn, and who's to say we can't get something from both of those games?

This is where things get interesting...

"Mick's got his way and I've got mine."

Those were the words that filled me with intrigue after an impressive press conference by Terry Connor.

The question is, what is Terry's way? 

As he said himself, there are things him and Mick agreed on and things they didn't, so to see what changes he brings will be fascinating.

Formation
 
I hope to god that one of the things he disagreed on was 4-4-effin'-2. If he tries to play this consistently I think it will result in relegation. Hopefully he sees that our best form and results since we have been back in the top flight have come with 4-5-1.

Personnel

We'll see now who he thought maybe should have been in the team, or who shouldn't have. Who will he play at right back, in the middle of midfield or on the wing? I get the feeling he may make one or two changes, but nothing too drastic.

Style
  
I don't know what he was like as a player, or what his teams played like for the reserves but I'm just hoping we play positively. We need to make sure there is no hangover period so we need the players lifted and raring to go.

The captaincy

This is the most interesting thing for me. Did TC agree with giving Johnson the captaincy? And even if he does, has he done well enough as skipper? His performances suggest he hasn't, and I'd like the captaincy to go to Karl Henry, or Kevin Foley. Two consistent performers, who the other players look up to and seem to react too. If selected, Jody Craddock wouldn't be a bad choice either. 

I certainly look forward to hearing the team news before the game, it will certainly gives us an indication of what is to come.

It's Connor

Well, this is certainly underwhelming.

Terry Connor has been given the manager's job until the end of the season. Madness if you ask me.

We've appointed the man who was assistant to who we sacked for not doing well enough. Granted, Terry has been here for a long time but this was the time to freshen things up.

"Really, that what Jez told you?", "Yes gaffer"

It makes the sacking of  Mick pointless now.

However, now we now who the manager is we have to get behind him and give him our support. The next month or so is going to be vital and we HAVE to pick up points.  Games against Blackburn, Bolton, Fulham are chances to pick up some points and get ourselves out of this mess.

It will be quite interesting to see what line up, and formation he goes with.Will he go 442, or 451? I suppose we don't really know who he rates higher. A positive was that it was his decision to play three forwards at half time against QPR, maybe he likes to go all out attacking? We'll just have to wait and see.

I can't imagine Adam Hammill is happy anyway.

Be bold

With Curbishley apparently rejecting us twice, Steve Bruce being an old lady, Brian McDermott signing a new deal with Reading and Brighton wanting more compensation for Gus Poyet than we would stump up, the search goes on.

And what I'd like us to do now, is be bold.

Take a chance.

With no stand out candidate now (not that there was really one before), I'd much prefer we went for a young 'up and coming' manager, with fresh ideas than someone who may have been there and done it, but seems to have gone stale.

And I do think there are some good young managers out there who if we wanted, we would get.

First on my list, Karl Robinson.

I've watched MK Dons a few times and they are great to watch. Almost Swansea like, but a bit more progressive. He's respected as a coach, something I think we need more than ever, and as he's worked under Sam Allardyce at Blackburn, which will have given him some very good experience of this league.

Robinson - Could teach our players a move or two.

Secondly, Eddie Howe.

Another very young manager, his team play attractive but quite effective football. Doesn't just stick to one formation and has got the best out of Jay Rodriguez, a Steven Fletcher style poacher. The job he did at Bournemouth was also nothing short of remarkable either.

And my third and final choice, Chris Powell.

Not only has he got his Charlton side playing great attacking football (the main theme behind my preferred candidates), but he is also an infectious character and all round nice guy. I think that would fit in well with our culture and may help to ease the bad feeling of Mick going. He also showed that bringing a whole new squad doesn't set you back a few months (cough, cough, Steve Bruce).

I think any of these three, and there are more, would bring a better approach than bringing in someone like Walter Smith, Ray Wilkins or Graeme Souness. It is very unlikely that Wolves will go down this route but even if the worst were to happen and we were relegated, it would give them three months Premier League experience and would hold them in good standing if we were to have a quick return to the top flight. 

Thank you and goodbye Mick.

It's official, Mick McCarthy has been sacked.

It was coming.I think every Wolves fan would agree about that but it really is very sad. This is the man who took over in 2006 with a paper thin squad and gave us a team to be proud of. This is the man who gave us Premier League football and famous results against some of the top teams in world football. I will always, always be grateful for that.

 The killer match for me wasn't just yesterday, it was a couple of weeks before against Villa. We finally looked like we might be turning things round, with Kightly finally fit, Frimpong looking like a star and O'Hara still to come back. It was all fitting. Frimpong got injured, Henry sent off and we fell apart. Did we ever really recover?

The worst thing is that he will now be remembered for what was his last game, the disgraceful defeat to West Brom. I don't even want to go into that, but it's terrible that we won't remember him for the above and more, and that he leaves with bad taste but he deserves all the praise and thanks he gets for what really was, a fine job.

There is more to be said over the next few days but thank you Mick, and goodbye.

What was your first Black Country Derby?

Finally.

That's right, on Sunday I, Louie Silvani, will (weather permitting) be attending my first Black Country derby.

Sad right?

Of course, it's not going to be the first remember but today I was interested to know what everyone's first experience of a Wolves-Albion match. I expect it to be a great atmosphere, tense but hopefully enjoyable.

I asked some of the Wolves twitter army their first ever Wanderers v Albion game:

 

The two videos I was sent: 

 

What was the first match you attended? Feel free to share, whether it was a good or bad result!

Nice to have you back, Kevin

Phew. Funny feeling isn't it, this winning thing?

Hopefully we can start getting used to it after a much needed three points, lucky ones at that too, for me. Cisse's silly act of petulance cost his team dearly, thankfully.

In came Sebastien Bassong. Though he was at fault for the goal, I was impressed with him. Strong, quick, composed and comfortable on the ball. Christophe Berra can count himself rather unlucky, but it was always going to be the one who Bassong came in for.

On his return, Jamie O'Hara was my man of the match. Got about the pitch well, moved the ball quickly and when we created something, he was at the heart of it. He's a huge player for us and we really have missed him, we need to keep him fit for the rest of the season.

Stephen Ward put in an improved performance, he's been below his high standards recently but he hasn't let it affect him. He dealt with Wright-Phillips pretty well and as usual gave us something extra going forward.

He's back

And how good was it to see Kevin Doyle looking sharp and confident? He revelled in a free role, driving with the ball, pulling defenders apart and taking some shots(!). He probably had more shots in that second half than he had previously in the whole season! Created the first, scored the winner. Not bad and I expect him to be pushing for a start against Albion.

A final word on Wayne Hennessey's save. If you haven't seen it, FIND IT. It is one of the best saves I've seen all season, he's been superb all season and though he's made a few mistakes lately, deserves all the praise he gets.

Hennessey - 8

Stearman - 6
Johnson - 6
Bassong - 7
Ward - 7

Foley - 7
Edwards - 6
O'Hara - 8
Frimpong - 6
Jarvis - 7

Fletcher - 7

Subs: Ebanks-Blake - 7, Doyle - 8, Milijas n/a.

We desperately needed a win ahead of a huge game next week at home to West Brom. A win would take us two points behind them, and would really give us that winning feeling. I genuinely thought we were down and out on Tuesday, but this Wolves team have knack of hauling themselves back into it.

Late starters

I heard a terrible stat the other day.

The only team in the Premier League not to score in the opening fifteen minutes of a game are, you guessed it, Wolves.

Now that really is, pathetic.

We give ourselves an uphill task so often, by being asleep for the first fifteen to twenty minutes. We've concede a silly amount during that time, it's no wonder that generally this season we have played well in the second half, chasing the game.

90k a week, good lord

Tuesdsay was an exception to that rule. To put it simply, we fell apart. Heads went, players went missing and it was so bad Steve Morgan even went to the dressing room to tell the players how he felt. However right or wrong he was to do that, I agree with him and hopefully it will give the players a kick up the arse. They have it too easy for me, we haven't seen the spirit that has seen us through from recent seasons.

I'm hoping for two changes to our game for our game tomorrow at Loftus Road. Firstly, Christophe Berra out, and Sebastien Bassong in. Extremely harsh on Christophe, but for me Bassong is a step up in class and with the other central defending being right footed, and our captain I think it will be Berra who is dropped.

Secondly, Jamie O'Hara for Eggert Jonsson. I feel sorry for Eggy, he had a decent game but he had a lot of abuse directed his way, unfairly. It really is no use leaving O'Hara on the bench if he's going to be in the squad, we need him to make an impact from the start, not when we are chasing the game again.

If we are going to get something from this game we need a performance. Not for half an hour, forty five minutes or an hour but for the whole game. We need to be committed, keep the ball and use our wingers effectively. Players to watch our for are Cisse and Zamora, but let's hope it takes them a while for a partnership to form.

My team would be:

Hennessey

Foley
Johnson
Bassong
Ward

Frimpong
O'Hara

Kightly
Edwards
Jarvis

Fletcher

That is a full strength team, and I hope we persevere with something like that for the rest of the season.

I had a dream that we would thrash QPR, but I'm going to go for a close game, but ultimately we will lose. 2-1 QPR. I can't remember what winning feels like, we need to get that feeling back, quickly.

Setting the tone

There's one thing that really bugs me about Wolves.

It's not Mick's team selections, Jez Moxey's transfer dealings, our position in the league table or the fact that we've won 2 in 20 league games and it's not that we aren't in the FA Cup this weekend.

It's our version of this:

Our bloody kick offs. At the start of the match or when we concede and we play the ball straight back to Wayne Hennessey, who gives it a great big kick down to the other end.

Why?

I've seen it so many times, and it goes straight to the opposition goalkeeper. Arsenal away, no one even went forward for it, we just gave it to Sczezny. It just sets the tone, that we are here to just hoof it, which we really shouldn't be.

When Jamie O'Hara signed, I thought we had got rid of it. In his first start, I remember him and Karl Henry having a lengthy conversation, which ended with Henry pointing to our goalkeeper, Henry played it to him, he passed it to Hennessey and he did what he usually does. A couple of games later Henry played it to him and he ran forward with the ball, and made a forward pass. It immediately set a new tone, that we wanted to keep the ball on the floor and attack.

But, we have resorted back to it, and the freshness from O'Hara was gone. What is the thinking? Is it that we will be in their half now? Because nine out of ten times we aren't, they have the ball!

If I ever get the chance to talk to Mick, that's what my first question would be about. But hey, maybe Frimpong will be the one to say this time 'what the hell is this?'.

Could this game decide Mick's future?

There haven't been too many points at which I've thought 'Mick's job is in trouble now', but this is one of them.

Maybe at times during the 07/08 season, and during Swansea and Sunderland games but generally his job has always seemed extremely secure. And maybe it still is.

The Birmingham game seemed to have been a huge tipping point for fans. On forums, blogs, articles, social networks, it was the worst I've seen at times. It wasn't the fact that we had lost to a Championship side, and our rivals (which is bad enough), but the fact that yet again we looked like a poor footballing side playing a rigid formation.

That's what the problem has been this season, there hasn't been much to give us hope. Last season, we looked like a side that just needed a bit of luck and that we could pull away (I still think we would have if Doyle hadn't got injured), whereas this year we have played next to no football, at anytime. We haven't had any great footballing performances like City home and away, United away and Chelsea away.

A poor performance, and defeat to go with it and I actually think Morgan may think he needs to take action. With only a week and a half left of the transfer window, he might want to get someone in quickly to make his own signings.

A good performance, even if we didn't win, would go a long way to settling Wolves fans fears. Against a poor Villa side, who I think could easily get dragged into a relegation battle, we need to see that this team can get the ball down and move it about comfortably.

The question is, will Mick go with this approach, and can we put in a half decent performance tomorrow?

Taking shape

It's taken until mid-January, but it finally feels like Woves can kick start their season.

It's always seemed to take us a while to get a fixed formation set, to get the players in the correct position's and for Mick to finally realise what we need. We need that more than ever now, with us trailing the team above us by five points, and four others breathing down our necks, it's quite remarkable that we haven't been in the bottom three this season.

Here is how I think we are going to, or try to set up from now.

I don't think there's any doubt that this man would be first choice keeper, Wayne Hennessey is vital to our survival chances. We can't afford for him to get injured, or sold because I'm not convinced Dorus de Vries has what it takes to play in the first team.

Oh Kevin Foley, how I have missed you. Mr Consistency showed his class in the cup game at Birmingham, looking infinitely better than Richard Stearman or Ronald Zubar have at all this season. Mick has hinted that he will start at Tottenham, thank god.

Roger Johnson finally looks like returning to form, with impressive performances lately. Injured his ankle in the cup, but should be okay at White Hart Lane where we are going to need a big performance from him.

You don't need to ask for a big performance from this man, he's given them week in week out all season long. Christophe Berra has shone lately, and has even been linked with a move away due to his brilliant form.

Stephen Ward completes the back four. Our player of the season so far, and though he has been a bit shaky lately continues to be a great outlet going forward as well as solid at the back. His partnership down the left hand side with Matt Jarvis is vital for us, when George Elokobi has played there we have seen Jarvo get less of  the ball and be less impressive.

It was a great sight to see Michael Kightly finally looking sharp and ready for first team football at Wolves. He's been so unfortunate over the last two and a half years, but I firmly believe that this time 'Kights' is ready to make an impact in the Premier League.

I was delighted when we signed Emmanuel Frimpong on loan, because he's exactly the type of player we've been lacking. Infectious, moves the ball quickly and can get about the pitch. He looks like he has the right attitude, and hopefully we can get the best out of him.

Karl Henry comes in for a lot of criticism from the fans, but I think he's been one of our most consistent players this season. He does a great job for us, and you can see he's improving on his attacking side of the game. In the Chelsea game he was excellent, moving the ball quickly. Maybe it was to do with having Frimpong next to him, he seemed less scared to go forward.

I'm not convinced that we have seen the very best of Jamie O'Hara,  but once he's fully fit I think he will be one of the players who benefit's most from this system. With two more defensive minded players with him in the middle, it gives him the freedom to get on the ball further up the pitch. We have seen he can get in good positions to score, so it's a case of using him effectively.

In Matt Jarvis we have one of the most dangerous wingers in the land. When he's confident, there's not a full back that can handle him. He is huge for us, and if he carries on with his recent form an England call up won't be far away.

12 starts, 8 goals. Has the best chances to goals record in the league. It's not hard to see why Mick is warning potential suitors not to bother bidding for Steven Fletcher. If we sell him, we are doomed.



So a 4-5-1 for me, with Frimpong and Henry holding, and O'Hara playing in front of them just off Fletcher. To me that looks like a decent side, as good if not better than the sides around us. It's not just the first eleven, we have Zubar, Stearman, Milijas, Edwards, Hunt, Hammill, Ebanks-Blake and Doyle all waiting to take their chance. All of a sudden our squad looks a whole lot stronger, and with time to make more signings could look even more impressive come the end of January.