Gary O’Neil says his group must channel their frustration over early-season results into positives when they travel to Villa Park this weekend.
The Old Gold are winless in the Premier League, losing to Newcastle United last weekend and at Brighton & Hove Albion in the Carabao Cup midweek. However, the head coach is making no excuses and knows his team can get a result against anyone in this league. And it is with that mindset that his side will travel through the West Midlands on Saturday.
To the injury news in the camp
“We need to check on Toti and Rayan in training today and see how they are. Neither of them has done much this week, so they both need to do a bit more to make sure they are ready to play again tomorrow.”
“Bouba is still out. He’s on crutches at the moment, he’s had an operation on the articular surface of his knee, so he’s probably out until around Christmas. Of course, a few players are tired after the pretty intense game on Wednesday, but injury-wise, apart from Ryan and Toti, who unfortunately both play in the same position, we’re fine.”
Channel frustrations correctly
“They’re a confident group, they believe strongly in their own individual abilities, many of them, and they believe in what we’re trying to do. Obviously the longer a difficult period goes on, the harder it gets, but we went through some difficult periods last season and we always managed to find a way, firstly, to keep performing and secondly to get some results.
“They can be an emotional group, a lot of ups and downs, but they understand that now too. It’s just about making sure they stay really balanced and use their emotions properly because you need them. There are no robots in there, emotions can be helpful and we need to use them this weekend. We need to use our frustration and the fact that we feel like maybe we haven’t gotten what we deserved for what we’ve put in so far and we definitely want to use that to make it right.”
— Wolves (@Wolves) 19 September 2024
About positive aspects to show in every game
“The games are difficult, but we have shown that we have enough good players and a good approach to give ourselves the opportunity to get results in all games. And we are frustrated that there are a few little things that really cost us a lot.
“We’re 2-1 down despite leading against Newcastle and the response to going behind has been fantastic – building pressure, demanding penalties, Nick Pope saving balls. There’s no self-pity or real worry, just frustration. We need to find a way to do better. We know that with our quality, no matter who we play, we can still be competitive and we need to find a way to make sure it works out in our favour.”
“We talk about how good we are and we’ve had some good games and we’ve looked like a half-decent team but let’s be honest, whether it’s Villa, Liverpool or Newcastle, however good those teams are, they’re in our league and we’ve got to find a way to make sure we get some points.”
To strengthen the defense
“A lot of goals from outside the box and a lot of really low shot rates at the moment. The statistics show that if we keep playing like we have been, it’s not going to continue like this. But there are a few things we can do – deal better with the one-on-one situation. When the teams are 30 meters from the goal, can we make sure we get the ball quickly?
“Apart from the Chelsea game where we completely lost the plot, we are not being torn apart by the other teams. Of course we have to work to put that back in order and we have to believe in what we are doing and it will not continue like this.”
About Guedes’ influence
“He’s had a big impact in the two cup games and as a substitute he’s shown some qualities. Guedes has been here before and it hasn’t worked out for him at all. We’re working really hard with him to make sure he can give something to the group. And it looks like he’s going to do that and at the moment it looks like he can.
“We just made him feel like if he can show something he has a chance. And he’s showing he’s willing to work, buy in and bring quality. We have to give everyone a chance. We have to get as much out of everyone as we can. There’s still a lot to do, it’s a Premier League season and he’s had a good start to the season for us. Considering where he was in the group a year ago, that’s been a really big step up. He looks like he can be a goal threat and he looks like he can give us something which is important for us.
“I was particularly pleased with how those three – Pedro Lima, Rodrigo and Guedes – performed on Wednesday night against Premier League opposition. I thought they did very well. Guedes has had some injury problems over the years and the next game comes too quickly for him to be considered from the start, but we hope his recovery has gone well and he can make an impact from the bench again.”
