24 Aug 2025 13:01:41
What is the road to safety?
Fortunately the magic number for survival is probably going to continue to be well below the "traditional" 40, indeed it has been below 30 in the last 2 seasons.
It is fortunate though as I don't see a route to that number even if the club makes several good signings this week.
Realistically though how many can be brought in 2, 3 at most, (although probably need 6 or 7), so it has to be another forward, a CM who can play as a 10 when not covering the 2 stars and sorry, captain or otherwise, Toti has to go, so an LCB.
I don't like it and obviously have to cross fingers that :1 the various new boys are capable - on v thin evidence of course.2 there are absolutely no injuries or suspensions -as the depth is paper thin 3 certain players like Emmanuel, Andre, Gomes and JSL stand up and show leadership, but the first 11 therefore looks like this. Starting 11 : Sa, Jackson, Yerson Emmanuel, New, (Krejci?) Wolfe, Andre, Gomes, Arias JSL New, (Uche?)
At the moment only 3 or 4 of them at most are playing to Prem standards but 2 by definition have not played yet and others are still extremely new to the club/league so whilst lots of work to do it is surely not impossible to believe this side, despite the appalling lack of Prem experience, can compete?
The route with 36 games left?
The vast majority of the points have to come from 8 games - 2 of which are within the next month! At home to Sunderland, Burnley, Everton, Leeds, WH, Palace (shorn of its stars?), Brentford and Fulham.
Then pick up a few in the reverse fixtures.
I have to hope for high 20s, say 28, from these 16 games.
That leaves 20 games to get, say 8 points (assuming 36 needed for survival) Sounds incredibly easy.
But all but the zealots on here can surely accept the chance of points from Arsenal, City, Liverpool and Chelsea home and away are very low, accounting for 7 of those games.
Away at a rejuvenated Spurs, a re-tooled Man U, Newcastle, Brighton, Villa and Forest also look hard.
So you might be down to 7 games to get 8 points?
Home to Spurs, Man U, Newcastle, Bournemouth, Villa, Brighton and Forest.
Of course Wolves may, as they did last year, pick up a point of two, (or more), from the "little chance" games or the "survival" total may be less than 36 reducing the number required from that 7.
However similarly either the total required might be higher or they won't get to 28 from the "easy" games
Consequently it can be seen that the "route" is very narrow and tight and failing to pick up at least 4 but in reality probably 6 from the 2 "easy" games over the next few weeks may already make it improbable.

1.) 24 Aug 2025
24 Aug 2025 15:20:50
Future. We so desperately need a performance, I feel that the result is almost less important, if some belief could be instilled in this squad I actually think we'd be ok. There lies the problem belief has to come from the coach off the pitch and a 'real' captain on the pitch. VP seems insistent on making the age old mistake of square pegs in round holes, Munetsi isn't an AM/winger and Bellegarde isn't a replacement for Andre (amongst other issues). His current setup is too narrow and predictable.

The other major problem is we haven't had a real established captain since Conor Coady, Dawson was a reasonable stopgap but Lemina, Kilman, Semedo, even king Neves, and now Toti just are not captains. The result is therefore that instead of the team finding an extra 10-20% they actually perform worse than the sum of their parts, look like a bunch of strangers and make mistakes.

I worry that we're seeing the whole Lemina debacle again, nobody capable of he captain job so give it to someone willing, Toti with time and space is an adequate defender, with the weight of the armband added he's a liability.

Hopefully we'll see an improvement next match as it's no pressure and I suspect due to CB issues a tweak to formation, maybe Munetsi or Andre as part of the back 3 but slightly advanced of the other 2. Fingers crossed.

2.) 24 Aug 2025
24 Aug 2025 16:17:46
We need to thank Pereira for saving us last season and give him some slack this. Two games is little to make judgement on but he is in a tight spot as the transfer window has, thus far been a disaster. If the finger is not pulled out in the next two weeks I can see him walking and rightly so. Who would want to replace him under the current circumstances, Dean Saunders? For Fosun it's all about finance and they will asset strip and sell on, it's shocking really but if it's not an easy financial gain I can see them walking having already covered their investment and made a handsome return. No loyalty in football or anything else these days. Let's throw Ukraine to the dogs it's not very different apart from the deaths.

3.) 24 Aug 2025
24 Aug 2025 18:11:51
Just an observation, (and you can say it is a positive or a negative however you want to spin it), but if my putative side is the first 11 then with 5 players debuting this season, Yerson playing only a handful of minutes prior to this year, Emmanuel having half a season, Andre and JSL a season and Gomes 2 and a half, only Sa has any real experience in the prem.
Indeed there will be many players with more Prem experience playing in the Prem this year than the entire Wolves side!

4.) 24 Aug 2025
24 Aug 2025 18:51:11
How many years does Doherty have?

5.) 24 Aug 2025
24 Aug 2025 18:52:39
Indeed Future, to some extent training and coaching is the process of preparing the players to perform a task by rote, when they have to think about every individual pass, tackle or shot it looks like we're currently playing.
This is my reservation with the belief of many posters on here that X new players will solve the problem, sometimes getting the basics right is what's needed.
If anyone is required it's experienced old heads, Jordan Henderson, Kyle Walker etc.

6.) 24 Aug 2025
24 Aug 2025 20:55:21
Handsome - loads but he shouldn't be anywhere near the first 11