Matt Murray on Wolves' keeper fight

Matt Murray believes Wolves goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey will one day thank boss Mick McCarthy for removing him from the first-team firing line.

Hennessey, one-time understudy to Murray, saw his first-choice spot go last season when the manager responded to some heavy beatings by bringing Marcus Hahnemann in as his last line of defence.

Hahnemann has shut off all hope of Wolves' young Wales international regaining his first team slot since then with high consistency and fitness.

But Murray, forced to abandon his own goalkeeping career earlier this autumn because of injury, reckons McCarthy has got it spot-on.

He said: "Wayne let four in against Chelsea and Arsenal and five against Sunderland and suddenly it starts playing on your mind.

"That can kill off a young goalkeeper, so Marcus came in and it didn't really affect him. He's the most level-headed guy I've ever seen - if he's playing brilliantly or if he makes a mistake, he's no different.

"He's in the twilight of his career, but he's been so consistent and solid, it's unbelievable.

"The fans love him and he's a character - he's crazy. But he makes goalkeeping look easy, he just gets in the right positions.

"Sometimes he comes and takes crosses and I think 'how did you get that? I'd have probably taken that going over five bodies and ended up breaking my shoulder!

"He just pops up in the middle of everyone and takes balls. Shots drilled at him, he just pats them down.

"He's got his own style, which certainly isn't an English one, but he's very effective and the main thing is he keeps the ball out of the net and he makes it look remarkably easy."

Hennessey, though, has played in Wolves' League Cup campaign to date and is expected to shake off the rust from all that bench-warming with another call to arms for tonight's Old Trafford game.

Murray knows him as well as anyone and - despite the 23-year-old's big ambitions - believes Hennessey still sees fulfilling his career prophecy at Molineux.

He said: "I believe his chance will come here, he signed a five-year deal so he must think his time will come.

"This is his club, he's come through the ranks here and he wants to play. I think there would be something wrong if he didn't want to play.

"But he's not sulking — he trains hard and works hard and in cup and reserve games he's done alright, and he's doing well for his country.

"So I think patience is the word for him and with Marcus being 38 now, he can't keep going forever.

"They get on well and we've always had that here with the goalkeepers, whoever is playing gets support from the others and you work hard together and learn from them too.

"Wayne will learn a lot from Marcus but he's just got to wait for his chance. When you're not playing week-in, week-out, it's hard sometimes, especially when you're up against top players.

"But Wayne's a young lad and people sometimes forget that. He's done really well and in my opinion, he's a top keeper.

"I honestly think he'll be one of the best over the next 10 years."