Often, a long and drawn-out international break is the best time for a big managerial decision to be made.
It remains to be seen whether or not the hierarchy at Wolverhampton Wanderers agree, as Gary O’Neil – for the time being – remains fixed to his Molineux job post, despite mounting pressures that he could face the sack very soon.
If he is to remain in his job past the break, the former AFC Bournemouth manager will have to make some significant changes to his starting line-up, especially in defence.
Wolves' defensive woes this season
Taking a glance at the current Premier League table certainly makes for some grim reading if you’re a fan of the Old Gold, with Wolves only picking one meagre point from seven games to date.
Examining their predicament further, and it’s clear that an extremely porous backline is their undoing at the moment, having shipped a league worst of 21 goals.
Team
Amount of goals conceded
1. Wolves
21
= 2. Everton
15
= 2. Southampton
15
4. Ipswich Town
14
5. Brentford
13
That’s a staggering six more than both Everton and Southampton have leaked in the division across the same amount of contests, as O’Neil’s defenders continue to let their underfire manager down.
Wolves’ last dire display in the Premier League really exposed their defensive frailties, as the Old Gold fell to a 5-3 defeat on the road to Thomas Frank’s Brentford, with the visitors surrendering a worrying eight big chances in favour of the hosts.
O’Neil will need his side to be far more stoic in games to come to try and move up the league, which might result in him dropping this underperformer, who could end up costing the 41-year-old his job if he isn’t adaptable with his team selections.
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Toti Gomes' poor performances this season
Of course, with Wolves rock bottom of the pile currently, every defender will need to take some collective blame for the sorry state of the performances.
However, Toti Gomes will know his performances need to be far better going forward, if he is to keep being selected by his under-pressure boss.
Stat – per 90 mins*
Gomes
Games played
5
Goals scored
0
Assists
0
Clean sheets
0
Interceptions*
0.2
Tackles*
1.4
Ball recoveries*
2.4
Clearances*
3.6
Total duels won*
4.0 (61%)
The Portuguese defender has really struggled in the centre-back spots this season, yet remains constantly picked by O’Neil, owing to issues involving Yerson Mosquera’s serious recent injury and the fact he has been unable to find a top partner to play alongside him, amid Max Kilman’s departure.
The best course of action could well be to drop the floundering 25-year-old, however, who has failed to be an imposing presence this season for his side, having previously stood out at the back for Wolves the past couple of Premier League campaigns, with 73 senior appearances at Molineux now under his belt.
Football journalist Nathan Judah has even stated recently that continuing to pick the out-of-form defender will be a “recipe for disaster”, if Wolves are to sort out their faulty showings at the back.
The answer could well come in the form of boldly selecting young Wolves defender Alfie Pond over the 25-year-old, who has been making waves in the youth set-up at Molineux for some time now.
Pond has amassed 28 games in the U21 set-up and will be banging down the door for some opportunities in the senior mix soon, with O’Neil well aware that gambling with the 20-year-old could prove to be a stroke of genius and an instigator for performances to pick up, after cutting a dejected figure post the Brentford loss when talking to the media.
He might well hold back on that bold call for his side’s first game after the international break, however, as the mammoth task of toppling Manchester City awaits the low-on-confidence Old Gold.
Still, big calls will need to be made to arrest Wolves’ slide on the pitch, or O’Neil could well finally find himself out of a job.
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