Dramatic Win At City Shows Nuno Has Steadied The Ship

Wolves fans have been used to trips across rough seas.

When you descend to the depths of League One and are closing in on the Davey Jones locker of league football. Manchester City fans should remember that too as they’ve been in similarly murky waters.

When you say: ‘Has Nuno now steadied the ship over the last couple of weeks’, you must remember that Wolves fans, well the vast majority, view the start to this season as a ripple in the ocean.

Don’t get me wrong, some have set off flares, pulled the emergency chord and called International Rescue but it’s because they got far too drunk in Turin and not because it was outright panic after a handful of league games.

Puns and metaphors aside the start we had wasn’t ideal, but it was not in need of any drastic action.

A draw away at Leicester was followed up with points against Manchester United and Burnley.

But the football wasn’t as free flowing and the defensive solidity we saw the whole of last season wasn’t on show, it did look frail at times.

What may have got to the Wolves fans is the football they now expect just wasn’t there. Between Everton away (01/09) and Braga in the Europa League (19/09) we did look a little lost at sea, but we weren’t sinking.

I think its lazy punditry to just blame the Europa League, as to date, the performances there had all been pretty good. It just wasn’t quite working for Wolves in the Premier League. I think Everton got a little lucky but we were by no means at our best.

Chelsea hammered us and it needs to be forgotten as quickly as possible and Braga was a smash and grab by a Portuguese team who claimed winning at Molineux was the greatest achievement in the club’s history.

Three or four games don’t make a season but wild comments and headlines do sell papers and get social media engagement.

I think it comes down to the age-old adage that form is temporary and class is permanent, well as long as you have the players to do it, and Wolves do.

Conor Coady the Scouse rock in the middle of defence had a few games to forget but after what we saw at the Etihad, all is now forgotten – and forgiven. Ruben Neves looked off the boil since his strike against United but is starting to show that class once again.

The real positive for Wolves fans is that a new class (of ‘19) is making its mark on the first team. Gibbs-White is doing all he can to stamp his mark. Willy Boly is a man possessed and has been terrific of late and of course there is Adama Traore.

So often commented on as a sprinter who tries to play football – and rightly so if you’d seen him for parts of last year, but he’s really come to the party this season.

Incredible video from away end of Adams’s winner! #wwfc #wolves #limbs

🎥 credit – @JustAsherly1 pic.twitter.com/sGa9bGLSl7

— The Wolves 77 Club 🎙 (@77ClubPodcast) October 6, 2019

If you want to talk about steadying the ship this is the lad who’s rolled up his sleeves, hoisted the sails and has Wolves on course, albeit from a very minor detour.

What everyone saw against City was the Wolves we know and love. Organised, tough, quick and skilled.

The crew had been knocked into shape after the disappointing start to the season and it was full steam ahead. I think it’s safe to say that we should have been a couple up by half time. Even the most hardened Liam Gallagher lookalike would be saying that from underneath the furred lined hood of his parker.

Wolves squandered good chances and City ended up very much on top in the second half. With the pressure building a lot of fans in my circle of friends were crying for the missed opportunities as the inevitable City goal neared.

Then what do you know, classic Wolves, we break way at pace and Traore, a man accused on our podcast a few days earlier of not being able to hit a barn door coolly slots home.

By the time the second went in the Etihad was half empty, the Wolves fans were in fine voice and it was outright jubilation.

Three wins in three. Bottom three to 11^th – and the first win in the Europa League group stage.

Poor start to the season?

Plain sailing from here then……