Wolves Fans' Verdict v West Ham: A huge three points!

Chris Ward

It's been a while since I've attended a Wolves match and left feeling confident and satisfied. Julen Lopetegui has done an impressive job in turning the team into a dynamic and energetic force in a short period of time. With new players being added to the squad, there is excitement for the future of the football club.

Wolves worked hard, kept possession well especially in the first half and created plenty of chances. It’s only a matter of time before the influx of goals start coming! Hwang worked hard, Cunha looks calm and composed in possession and now for successive appearances Nunes is starting to live up to his transfer fee and looking every bit of the quality player we expected.

Nelson Semedo had his best game yet in a Wolves shirt and looks like a different player under Lopetegui's guidance. However, Collins looked nervous in possession and could have cost the team dearly with his lack of composure. The question remains if Collins or Kilman will be paired with Dawson when the next signing is made.

Overall, it was a solid performance and there is a lot to be excited about. The team is now out of the drop zone, has defeated a relegation rival, and is on the rise.

John Lalley

The beautiful game this certainly wasn’t, more a grinding battle of attrition that any spectating neutral would have little difficulty in rapidly forgetting. But for Wolves, this priceless result is an absolute blessing regardless of any aesthetic deficit.

West Ham’s blanket defence throughout the first 45 minutes clearly indicated their intentions. Given their dismal run of late, their prime intention was to regimentally screen 11 men behind the ball and take home the single point they started with.

It’s unusual to see a West Ham outfit so inhibited; no pretty bubbles blowing, that’s for sure. A definite sign that they are ill at ease with themselves right now with an increasingly irritable manager clearly feeling under enduring pressure.

Wolves, despite much possession, incessant probing and infinite patience failed to trouble Lukasz Fabianski all half. We’ve witnessed our attacking options being comfortably nullified all too often this season and at the interval, it was difficult to see how Wolves might break the deadlock.

The irony was that Wolves began the second half with concentration level at zero and a couple of crazy errors almost gifted an opening for the Hammers. But wholly unexpectedly, with exasperation still simmering, we surge forward, create a belated opening and win the game. Daniel Podence’s delightful, VAR interference-free finish inevitably signalled a wholesale change of tack for West Ham, but their spluttering ineffectiveness in front of goal ensured that Jose Sa, just like Fabianski had little to concern him.

What opportunities came West Ham’s way were usually the result of careless errors from Wolves who looked a touch ill at ease playing out from the back. But a rare clean sheet for us was an added tonic; just for once, the bounce of the ball, the deflections, nicks and rebounds favoured us and for all of our shortcomings this season, our ration of good luck has been in devastatingly short supply.

All that mattered was winning this game regardless of how the points were secured, but it was still a lingering frustration that until West Ham pushed forward in numbers late on, we never looked likely to gain the cushion of a second goal. When the space did appear, Neves was so unfortunate rattling the woodwork with a superb strike that would have eased the understandable tension of the final minutes.

But no matter; mission very much accomplished and Lopetegui’s quiet revolution takes another substantive step forward. With both newcomers Cunha and Lemina making significant contributions and with further recruitment imminent, the second half of this season just might not be as disconcerting as the first!

Clive Smith

Relief. Was that the overriding feeling? It felt a long second half that's for sure knowing how insecure a one goal lead can be. Our new manager bounce, if that's what it is, has thankfully given us slightly more confidence based on our improved performances.

From back to front we played pretty well throughout. Yes there were a few scary moments in our own third but we looked like a team more joined up and endeavouring to get forward as often as we could. It was difficult with West Ham quickly forming a defensive wall that required plenty of patience to work through and around.

Moutinho played further forward than usual even flashing a header wide from just inside their area. Neves had a volley from a corner that flew off the sweet spot but was unfortunately off target. It was cagey at times but one of the stars was Semedo. His confidence has grown significantly over the last month and with Bueno being positive too it meant we had plenty of passing options. Cunha was more mobile too.

The second half started with a bang and the goal we desperately wanted. It forced West Ham to play more on the front foot, opening the game up which gave us more opportunities when we raised our tempo too.

Lopetegui made full use of his bench again with four subs playing 20 minutes and the fifth 10 minutes. Far from being a disruption this provided more impetus to clinch the game with a second goal. Even though this never came it was a bold approach and one that keeps more of the squad involved and contributing. We did look the most likely to score in those closing stages.

We'll be saying this for a while, there is a long way to go, but these much needed three points at least makes the table look better. The season has reached half way and we are outside the bottom three.

Rob Cartwright

This was possibly our biggest game of the season, so far. Let’s hope we look back on it, come May, as the turning point to our fortunes. It’s a massive win.

Lopetegui is certainly stamping his authority over both the tactics and the squad. We are far more forward playing. Yes, he plays out from the back with the objective of bringing the opposition out to leave gaps. Wolves players are getting forward more; the penny has started to drop!

Two things were lacking, in the first half:

– speed of movement when in possession.

– movement into space to initiate the forward pass from the player with the ball.

Both these issues were addressed quickly in the second half. Indeed, both elements were evident with the goal after 48 minutes. This got the volume up from the stands and the players responded. I felt we played very well throughout the second half. We could easily have scored more especially efforts from Neves and Jimenez. We were also fortunate not to concede with some last gasp defending and poor finishing by West Ham.

We had a sense that the tide is turning.

I really like the look of Cunha. He plays with his heart on his sleeve with lots of determination and clever play around the opponents box. Lemina impressed for his 20 minute cameo too. He gets stuck in and moves quickly from box to box. The tackle he made on 96 minutes was heartwarming.

Semedo was superb in second half. Bueno shading my man of the match as he was consistently good throughout the game. Nunes is starting to purr. His involvement in the goal demonstrates the positive intent he makes where he glides with the ball through West Ham’s midfield. Podence was also excellent with a great goal.

We now have options and Lopetegui knows how to maximise them. One of his greatest attributes is the timing and tactics surrounding substitutions. I’m afraid his predecessor hadn’t got a clue with subs!

Still a lot of work to be done. Last Wednesday was a set back and we have big games coming up against Liverpool, Man City and Liverpool again. It’s all very tight in the league and I’m looking towards February and March to pull ourselves clear. Won’t be long before we are looking forwards and not over our shoulders!

I think our season is finally getting started!

Adam Virgo

Solid performance and a massive three points for us. We were in control for large parts of the game, especially in the first half.

It would have been nice to capitalise on that with a goal before half time but scoring so early in the second half was huge. Fantastic work from Semedo who was brilliant all afternoon and a wonderful finish from Podence who has been lethal under Lopetegui.

Still got plenty to improve on but it was nice to get a win at Molineux and a clean sheet too. Kilman and Collins dealt with Antonio really well and Semedo was fantastic at both ends of the pitch.

Lemina looked really good when he came on and having him as an option really bolsters our midfield. Neves was exceptional and if only his effort that hit the bar went in. Nunes is always causing problems with his direct runs and i just feel like we’re only going to keep getting better.

It feels like we’re getting that mentality back where we feel like we can go into any game and get a positive result. Improving our squad helps with that along with having a manager that understands everything.

James Pugh

Julen has got the boys going again. What a massive massive result. While there’s still a mountain to climb, and there were periods when Wolves lost control, this result really does shine a positive light on the rest of the season.

Not only has Julen been backed heavily in the January window, you can already see the impact he’s had on the existing players. Semedo had his best game in a wolves shirt, and Kilman was Maldini-esque. Jimenez looked a lot more on it when he came on, and Neves, Bueno, Sa and Matheus were their usual excellent selves.

I feel bad for Hwang as he really needs to get more plaudits for the amount of work he puts in week in week out, and the mini-magician Podence looks a different player. Let’s not take anything away from the new boys though. Cuhna really does look like the real deal, he passes, reads the game well and presses with the intensity of a Love Island final. Lemina's brief debut looked promising too.

With performances like that, new players en route and the collapsing of the teams around us, the negativity surrounding previous months is getting silenced more and more each week. The club is finally moving in the right direction and I am actually looking forward to taking a bite out of the upcoming Liverpool/Man City fixture sandwich.

Fraser Bishop

Finally out of the relegation zone… how good does that feel? It’s games like Saturday’s which will define our fate; beat those around us and we stay in the Premier League.

The improvement under Lopetegui has been evident, with just one defeat in seven, but keeping a clean sheet in the league illustrated that improvement further. Defensively we looked very solid, with Semedo having his best game in a Wolves shirt, and, for the most part, Antonio’s physicality not causing us too many issues.

On another day, we could have scored a couple more too. Even though it was a game of few chances, Neves very nearly scored a screamer which rattled the bar and Raul was unlucky with the offside – which looked no different to Salah’s goal at Anfield by the way. Also, a mention to Lemina who had a solid cameo from the bench as a sub having been thrown in for a debut.

Perhaps, at times, we did look shaky playing out from the back with Sa in particular having a few nervy moments. Fans responded to this by displaying their own unrest, which is understandable given where we are, but I think we have to accept that playing out from the back is how Lopetegui wants us to play, and even if mistakes do happen from time to time, when his playing style properly beds in we will reap the rewards.