Fan column: Wolves must build from a positive performance and gain momentum against Brighton

Certainly, I’ve heard numerous fans identifying the Everton and Spurs games as potential turning points, but there will need to be more substantial evidence before supposition is transferred into reality. 

I remember the corresponding fixture against Tottenham last December. Pereira just appointed and buoyed by two initial wins over Leicester and Manchester United saw a battling Wolves grab a point with Strand Larsen’s late equaliser. Onwards and Upwards? Not quite; January saw us lose all four league matches, conceding 11 and scoring one. 

But always during that campaign, there was the reassuring cushion of the hapless trio of Leicester, Ipswich and Southampton all below us ready to break our fall. And just for good measure, we beat all three of them later in the season to survive with plenty to spare, even in the wake of our dreadful January. 

All the early evidence suggests that no comparable comfort-zone will be on offer this time around. The promoted duo of Sunderland and Leeds already have significant points on the board and a struggling West Ham will be energised no doubt by Nuno’s arrival in London. 

It’s unpalatable, but not unreasonable to suggest that Wolves might themselves be the outfit who become detached and fill the role occupied by last season’s bottom three. By no means inevitable but realistically distinctly possible. 

After another positive visit to Tottenham, despite diametrically opposed emotions in comparison to last year, we cannot afford this October to resemble the results of last January. 

Certainly, there were a number of positives to be taken from last week, not least that Vitor Periera tactically outflanked a frustrated Thomas Frank during that second half. 

On the field, Santi Bueno showed us why he is an international player and he dovetailed most effectively with Ladislav Krejci who has adapted immediately to Premier league football making a most compelling impression. 

Marshall Munetsi, often derided, defended tirelessly; Jhon Arias during an excellent second half, showed his best form since his arrival. 

Most significantly, the magnificent Andre absolutely excelled; the notion of leaving him on the bench as happened earlier this season now appears an utterly absurd course of action. 

But a solitary promising performance counts for little without sustained consolidation beginning against Brighton. The bogey opponents; a seemingly insoluble problem that we cannot untangle. Best start now!