Wolves Fans' Verdict v Man City: This team is crying out for investment!

Here we go again! A new season, new optimism, or lack of, and another summer of underwhelming transfer business. As if we ever expected anything different from Fosun!

Firstly though, it was all about celebrating the life of one of the best players we have seen at Molineux in decades. Diogo Jota gave me some memories I will never forget as a Wolves supporter. From the goal vs Man Utd to send us to Wembley, to the last-minute winner versus Leicester to win 4-3, and many more, Diogo was one of those players we thought a lot of, and that was evident on a day where we could show how he will forever be in our hearts at Wolves. May you and your brother Andre rest in peace Diogo.

As for the current team, the manager has once again been let down by the owners. After what he managed to do last season, Vitor Perreira gave us fans optimism moving forwards and the talk in the summer was that Fosun had realised they had made mistakes and were ready to try and do things differently. Well thus far, it's been the same old story. Some of our top players sold, far more outgoings than incomings and a lack of conviction and urgency in the market has proved to us once again that there is zero ambition or intent than to finish 17th. 

Unless the next two weeks surprise us with signings that will provide the quality needed then I'm not optimistic at all that we will be a Premier League club next season. Considering we have been in the top division now for eight years the quality has been watered down season after season and when you sell the likes of Cunha, Ait-Nouri and Semedo and don't replace them there are bound to be serious concerns. We have over £100m worth of sales and also the likes of Sarabia, Guedes, Boubacar Traore and the numerous others that have moved on saving us close to £500k a week on wages, there is absolutely no excuse regarding being able to afford replacements. If that genuinely is still an issue we might as well pack up.

As for the game itself, I'm sure most fans were of the opinion we would struggle to get a result so I don't think too much can be based on this one result alone. I thought for the first 30 minutes we played some decent stuff. Seven minutes later its 2-0 and game over. Teams like Manchester City can do this to opponents in an instance. Players such as Haaland don't get paid £500k a week for no reason. Give them one chance and it's in the back of the net.

Although Hoever did quite well in my opinion, the fact is that still having the likes of him and Matt Doherty in our starting line-ups says everything about the lack of progression for many years now. Joao Gomes and Andre once again showed we have a good midfield pairing and JSL showing good promise up front. But the opinion is that I'm just not sure where the goals are going to come from to win football games. As committed and hardworking as Bellegarde and Munetsi are, they are not players who will create and score the goals required at this level.

Two huge weeks ahead to bring in the players the manager and fans demand. Hopefully I'm wrong but I wouldn't hold my breath!

Adam Virgo

Before I talk about the football, I want to mention that the tribute for Diogo Jota was absolutely incredible. Everyone involved in setting it all up did an amazing job and both sets of fans showed class in remembering an amazing person and footballer.

Our fans singing his name for the last 10-15 minutes and then continuing after the game ended was a really special moment. Seeing all of the players, including some of the Man City ones too clapping it really was a fantastic footballing moment where everyone came together. Big respect also to Sasa Kalajdzic for laying his number 18 shirt down too, a real touch of class from him.

Onto the game and it highlighted massively that we need investment still in some key areas. Man City were extremely clinical, scoring all four of their shots on target but we should have done much better for two or three of them.

We started the game well and until their opening goal we offered a threat and were defending resiliently. Their first goal was mainly down to Man City showing the quality they have but then conceding again two minutes later is unforgivable, especially in the manner that it happened.

Agbadou gave the ball away sloppily and it was a good finish from Tijani Reijnders. Maybe Jose Sa could have done better but the goal all came down from our own errors with the ball.

If we went in at half-time only one down it would have at least given us a chance to go in, settle down and try build on something in the second half but two goals down to a very strong Man City side is hard for any side to come back.

We started the second half pretty well, Larsen should have done better with his early chance and we once again looked OK but lacking any real clinical edge.

Man City’s third and fourth goals were also very avoidable. The third we just didn’t track the runners and if you let Erling Haaland shoot unmarked in the 18 yard box, he’s going to score most times. The fourth was us giving the ball away yet again and a clinical finish from Rayan Cherki.

I think a 4-0 defeat was harsh in a sense because it didn’t feel like that type of game but if you give away the ball in your own half to this Man City side, they’re going to punish you with the quality they have. I was very surprised Arias didn’t start, going into a game with Bellegarde and Munetsi both in attack just limited us in terms of creativity.

A lot of work still needs to be done, especially in the transfer market. We need to be a lot cleverer when we have the ball because we can’t keep conceding simple goals in transition. Hopefully we can get the players in we need and soon.

Clive Smith

I read an article recently saying about the thrill of a new signing in the transfer window - but keeping your best asset is just as important. Those of us who voted Gomes as player of the season back in May at least have a reason to be cheerful. Likewise being able to retain Andre has to be good news. 

However the inactivity from Wolves recruitment team to replace Cunha, Ait-Nouri and Semedo in a timely manner is either careless or disastrous depending on your view.

Articles saying Wolves are interested in, considering, are looking at, have been watching, etc are tedious, and not necessarily based on fact. The trap door closes at the end of the month - patience remains a virtue.

With VP seemingly having more control and Mendes more involvement during the summer - I await to see the evidence of that. 

So, let's concentrate on what we do have, and that's a Premier League team to support for the eighth season running.

Having lost nine of our last 10 games against City this match was hardly likely to see us start the season with a bang. And so it proved. 

Although out played at times we were also competitive for some of the game. To get a result against this expensively assembled standard of opposition we needed everyone to be a seven or eight out of 10, and we didn't have that. 

In front of goal Larsen had at least three or four opportunities while we wasted other chances by going offside too many times. Meanwhile, in defence, Agbadou seemed to think he was better than he actually is, careless passes and poor marking meant he was well below the level he performed at most of last season and was partially at fault for all goals 

A trademark from the Nuno era was our long range diagonal passes and there was plenty of evidence, in this game, that the identity VP talks about wanting us to have includes this. 

Long balls behind Ait-Nouri and diagonal passes wide to Hoever provided most of our promising forward attacks. Andre and Gomes grew into the game, competing well and providing a strong physical presence. 

Too much elaborate short passing in our own third (likely to be seen more often by most teams) stemming from Sa having to release the ball quicker, allowed City to press high and in numbers. Too often this resulted in a cheap turnover of possession. Not all teams will be as good as City at the press but several will apply it. We need to improve our technique to bypass this situation and turn it into our advantage.

The scoreline was a little harsh, had we been better in their box it might well have been 4-2.  Gomes had a good game but Hoever gets MOTM, in probably his best game for Wolves. He handled Doku well and was also putting crosses into their box on a regular basis in the first half. Wolfe had a tough day, he's not been with us long so I suspect he found it quite challenging. 

Finally, the tributes to Jota, before, during and at the end of the game were a credit to all involved. Well-done.

John Lalley

Effort and commitment not in doubt but that’s not the issue. It’s the quality and the depth of this Wolves’ squad that is the concern. 

The structure of our season will not be defined by how we fare locking horns with the likes of Manchester City, that’s for sure. By the end of this game there was a chasm between the teams in terms of ability and class. 

Once City had prised us open for the first goal, the outcome was inevitable. Wolves had been competitive until that point and had Munetsi not drifted offside, we could have been in front ourselves. But the careless pass that led to the killer second goal served as a glaring example that any lapses of concentration against opponents of this pedigree are liable to prove fatal. City strolled home afterwards producing two stunning moves of outstanding quality to double their advantage. 

Maybe on a more inspired day, Jose Sa may have done better, but surely the die was already cast. The speed and slickness of their passes and their movement to create space left us chasing shadows. Ultimately, we were outclassed. No disgrace, but massive concerns all the same. 

On the plus side, Andre and Gomes offered their usual competitive energy in midfield; Hoever played some inviting crosses from the right and was not defensively embarrassed by Doku and spirits didn’t significantly drop until late on. 

These crumbs of comfort were never going to be enough to inconvenience a dominant City outfit. The worry is that our limitations might be exposed by a good many other teams much less capable than Manchester City.

Matthew Spencer

So, I saw that we had Man City for our opener and instantly thought that we'd get battered, especially with our pitiful August form in the Premier League. Yet, come matchday, I allowed myself to dream and gave Wolves a chance. Football was back and the excitement cannot be equalled.

After the fantastic but emotional Jota pre-game display, Wolves came out and took the game to City! We had them rattled and if certain players knew the offside rule, we would have been ahead. Then reality hit and City scored. Of course it was Haaland, completely unmarked as our centre backs looked around for who is to blame (it's you!). Then another comes again from a poor pass from Agbadou, who looks like he's still in pre-season mode.

City only needed five minutes to put us to bed on that half. Precision, quality and clinical, all things Wolves are not in the final third. The second half was essentially the same as the first. Admittedly, City did look very good. However, we should be putting up more of a fight at home. So full time and now all I'm thinking is are there three worse teams than Wolves in the league this year? You take out Cunha and Ait-Nouri and Wolves look woeful in attack. 

I thought Wolfe looked OK on the left but he is a downgrade on Ait-Nouri. Hoever is also a significant downgrade on Semedo. Gomes and Andre are dogged and class in the middle. Strand Larsen may need plenty of chances to score goals, which is worrying in a team that is struggling to find ways to create them.

Our next two games in the league are indeed winnable, so my only hope is that we were simply outclassed by superior opposition in City, rather than us demonstrating why we may be playing in the Championship next year.

Harry Lee

As the tributes to Wolves legend Diogo Jota began, with Fields of Gold as an incredibly emotional musical backdrop, the game of football ahead felt very insignificant. Wolves fans should be incredibly proud coming together as one to remember Diogo’s life and his immense contribution to Wolves’ recent success.

The match itself ended as most fans would have expected, when you contrast the line-ups from when we got promoted to the Premier League, going into the 18-19 season where’d you’d go into every game believing we can win no matter the opposition against where we sit now is extremely concerning.  

The lack of signings going into a season is nothing new, and the impact it has on our early season form should be no surprise. We have lost most of our attacking flair in Cunha and Ait-Nouri whilst simply not replacing it. There were few encouraging spells in the game from a Wolves perspective to mention. With the Man City defensive line so high we were crying out for pace we no longer possess in the squad.

Under Pereira Wolves had tightened up defensively, with a poor pre-season and four goals conceded in the first game, we must get back to that stronger defensive unit we once were when Agbadou joined – who seems to be a mere shadow of his former self. A huge couple of weeks to go in the transfer window – three or more players are a must, not just squad players either, but we’ve been here before, have lessons been learned or are we heading for the same January panic?