Wolves' Fans Verdict v Watford: Time for starting Xl to change

Clive Smith

What's your verdict?

Ouch! That was a slap in the face. A game with few positives from our angle. Watford outplayed, out muscled and out passed us frankly. For twenty minutes the ball was played from box to box before a double whammy left us with a serious challenge. Sadly we were unable to offer much of a threat and rarely looked likely to score.

Watford were able to keep the ball, playing neat triangles, retaining possession, while playing the ref cleverly and making a tactical foul here and there when required.

As at Leicester, when it is 2-0 the opposition play a 'what we have we hold' game. For Wolves though, nothing seemed to be working very well. Passes to Doherty were unproductive, Neves and Moutinho were passing poorly and not winning the ball back enough. Few second balls were picked up by us and only Bennett seemed able to win any headers. The front three rarely found much space or time on the ball and were crowded out comfortable. Most of our set pieces were wasted, two or three corners ended without the ball getting into the box.

With the Nuno substitutions our formation changed to have a back four but, as we have seen before, as a Plan B it never looks likely to work.

The performance was poor and it was disappointing to lose at home, but one defeat in seven games still represents a decent run of form.

Who impressed and who didn't play well?

Besides being beaten twice in a minute Patricio didn't really have much to do.

Otto played for the first half and was below par.

Doherty was unable to make much impact as an attacking threat which was disappointing given his recent form.

Boly has probably not had a worse game for us. Frequently he gave the ball away and was beaten for pace far too many times. He did nearly score with a back heel however!

Bennett was competent with his defending but gave the ball away cheaply more than usual.

Despite failing to block the shot for the first goal Coady had a good game. Tackling well and sweeping up he was pick of the bunch today. MOTM.

Neves was poor and nowhere near his best. Often over run in the middle he was frequently chasing back but the wrong side of his man. He did make one excellent goal saving challenge in our box but also picked up another needless yellow that will cost him game time soon.

Moutinho was slow and sluggish, also struggling to have any impact in midfield. He lacks the physical presence to compete against so many big blokes.

Costa had some bright moments and was our best forward. He did however waste a couple of shooting opportunities late on.

After nine games with few highlights maybe now is the time to take Jota out of the starting XI until he gets his mojo back. He was again well below the standard he set last season. Whether he can be an impact substitute is also questionable.

Jimenez failed to influence the game as he has been doing. With our passing poor generally he did not see much of the ball in decent positions.

From the bench Vinagre came on at half time. Some adventurous play helped us improve but he did leave Boly exposed to their counter attack.

Cavaleiro played the last thirty minutes in a central role. One chance with a header was wasted.

Traore had twenty minutes but with the Watford bus firmly parked there was little space for him to get up to speed.

Russ Evers

What's your verdict?

The level of disappointment felt around Molineux yesterday is surely tantamount to proving just how far we have come in such a short space of time.

Watford were 10th before kick off having gained a few notable scalps along the way and on the day they were the better side-simple.

The two goals within a few seconds turned the game round - both of them examples of clinical accuracy. Other than that Riu Patricio was untroubled whilst our half chances were all a foot or more too high or wide. Their midfield won it for them with an excellent display and our engine room will need to be firing on all cylinders next week as we travel to good old Sussex by the sea.

One bogey side after another, hopefully not referred in the same manner as today's game was.

Gulraj Kular (musingsfrommolineux.wordpress.com)

What's your verdict?

Well if was going to happen at some point. There’s a reason the record for the same team being named from the start of the season is eight games. The ninth was the straw that broke the camel’s back. The Palace game felt a little stale but the first half was downright rotten here.

Watford operated a narrow midfield which crowded our magnificent duo of Moutinho and Neves and their athleticism meant that we simply couldn’t get near them. We were second best in every department and while we weren’t necessarily conceding many chances, Watford’s physical power combined with their surprisingly slick passing meant they dominated the game. Capoue’s goal was indicative of his performance, a powerful, clean strike that took all by surprise. The second was a shock to the system as Moutinho lost the ball in the build up but we were too easy to break down from there.

I’m not buying into the argument that the international break affected us as the tempo was significantly raised in the second half. We would’ve struggled to lift ourselves if we were done in by our travels although Raul Jimenez had his quietest game by far. The second 45 minutes felt like a lot of energy spent and ferocity without much actually happening. A few near misses here and there but we didn’t particularly threaten the goal and neither did Watford. The damage was done in a 58-second spell in a poor first half and that was the end of it.

Who impressed and who didn't play well?

Neves and Moutinho had by far their worst games of the season. It was strange to see them look so average. Capoue and Doucoure are classy operators but Neves and Joao have plenty more in the locker.

Jonny was afflicted by the international debut curse that struck Matt Jarvis a few year past and Willy Boly was as cumbersome as a string of Wolves defenders of the past.

Helder Costa woke up at half time and while Diogo Jota got into some good positions he again failed to have a meaningful effort on goal. Ruben Vinagre showed the benefits of a left-footer on the left as well as his general ability going forward and Matt Doherty had much more joy down his side after the break which we lost when he was withdrawn.

A bad day at the office - we know Nuno won’t allow it next week.

Rob Cartwright

What's your verdict?

Watford had an excellent game plan to reduce our usual creative threat. They were first to the loose balls in midfield and often doubled up on our wing backs to stifle their ventures up field.

Capoue, Hughes and Doucoure, in particular, were too strong and fast for Neves and Moutinho, thus cutting off the source of most of our attacking threat.

There was only 58 seconds between the Watford goals. Both were assisted by Man of the Match Doucoure. A killer blow on the day.

It wasn’t always like that though. Wolves shaded first 20 minutes and were starting to build momentum. I was confident we would go on to win the game comfortably!

The first goal came out of nowhere and a great long distance shot, which went through the legs of Coady which probably didn’t help Patricio. The defence were still licking their wounds as the second went in and should have done better.

Wolves had the better of the second half with Watford happy to play deep and hold onto what they already had. Chances fell to Boly with a crafty back heel, Cavaleiro who headed over and Costa who shot over from good positions.

Who impressed and who didn't play well?

The team fell 10-15 per cent below their usual. Is this the impact of 10 players away on international duty? Only time will tell.

Johnny looked jaded and was rightly replaced at half time. Doherty looked good but could find no space to get forward. Vineagre did well when he came on.

Bennett was the pick of the back 3. Costa was the pick of the forward players. Jota has not had the best of starts to the season and I think his place is the one most under threat by Cavaleiro and Traore. Jimenez must have been very frustrated, as he received absolutely no service in or around their box.

Natalie Wood

What's your verdict?

The curse of manager of the month strikes again!

After a week off the league I was so ready to see if wolves could continue where we left off! Watford was always going to be tough test but also one we could (and potentially should) be winning.

We started the game quite well with a couple of good chances but as time ticked on you could see Watford growing in confidence. Obviously the key turning point in the first half was the action that took place in 20 minute! Going 2-0 down in the space of a minute was impressive even for Wolves! Watford’s first goal was an excellent strike, he was given far to much space but to be fair sometimes you just have to give credit to a great goal. Their second was again a good finish but a really poor lapse in concentration by wolves. After that the first half just fizzled out with little to write home about but to be honest with how quickly our defence crumbled I was glad to see us go in to the break only 2-0 down!

Vinagre introduction at half time was a welcome one. He injected a bit of life down the wing, Jonny had struggled during the first half and never really got going. The second half did see an improvement in our play but that final touch just wasn’t there. To be honest while we created some nice chances there really wasn’t many moments that we really looked like we were going to score. It just wasnt our day and the officials certainly didn’t help things! I hate to be one to bash the officials but Lee Mason was awful yesterday, giving away free kicks for silly things constantly, wasting time by ensuring said free kicks were taken from the exact blade of grass the incident took place yet he allowed Ben Foster to time waste at every opportunity from 55 minutes onwards. Win or lose it is really frustrating as a fan to watch officiating like that- it just ruins the game.

For once I think it is a challenge to pick a star player...I would say it was a pretty mediocre performance by all. Cavaleiro looked sharp when he came on, I really think he has shown enough to deserve a start last week. Vinagre also showed moments of class, it would be good to see more from him in the coming weeks. They were probably the best out of a bad bunch.

There was just something that didn’t click against Watford, while I think it has been great to stick with the same team up to this point, I think now is the time for some changes. We are becoming quite predictable for the opposition and our weaknesses are getting even more obvious as time ticks on! The number one change for me has to be Jota for Cav. Jota really hasn’t settled into the premier league and has consistently been our weak link, during the Watford game you could really see what an impact his performances have had on his confidence- he fluffed simple passes, got dispossessed very easily and seemed petrified to shoot. Cav on the other hand looks to be chomping at the bit for a chance!

Credit has to be given to Watford who were the first team this year that really controlled our midfield...they even manage to stop Traore! We are always going to lose some games in this league (although it did feel very strange to lose at home!) but now is all about how we respond next week. We have had a lot of players on international duty which I’m sure had an affect on not just some individual performances but also how we played as a team, hopefully a full week of training and some sea air in Brighton next week will do the trick!

Adam Virgo

What's your verdict?

That’s the first game, especially at home in such a long time I’ve seen us lose the midfield battle completely.

Credit to Watford, they stopped us completely, but as a team we were very poor which is a little frustrating, considering how high we’ve set the bar at times this season, but we move onto next week at Brighton.

The first 15 mins or so, it wasn’t the worst but I could feel Watford creeping closer to getting a chance. We didn’t really get hold of the game and the players looked like they had a hangover from the international break.

The first goal was a very good strike by Etienne Capoue, we should have probably had someone ready to close down the shot but he hit it near enough perfect. It was a bit fortunate to go straight through Coady’s legs and once Patricio had moved slightly, he had no chance.

Then we somehow collapsed which is unlike us. We needed to just keep the ball and calm down but instead we give it away instantly off kick off, Watford go up the other end and make it 2-0 within a minute. Credit to Roberto Pereyra as it was a fantastic finish but from our point of view, we should never be conceding two goals so quickly.

The second half was better but still nowhere near our best and some of our sloppy play almost got punished on the counter. Neves made an incredible tackle for one of them to stop almost a certain goal.

We didn’t test Ben Foster enough at all and in the end, Watford deserved the three points. We’ll have to be much better away at Brighton next week if we want to get a result.

Let’s not forget as well, yesterday was one of the worst refereeing performances I’ve seen in a long time. That isn’t the reason why we lost, however some of Lee Mason’s decisions in the second half were ridiculous and if that’s the standard of refereeing in the premier league, then there is a problem.

Who played well and who didn't impress?

Our best player was probably Vinagre. Jonny looked like he was still on international break, along with a few others but that was definitely his worst performance of the season. Vinagre looked sharp and willing to beat players, put a few decent crosses in too that we didn’t make the most of.

Cavaleiro looked quite lively when he came on too. He had that header which went over and when he came on, we did create a few half chances. Surely he’s got to start ahead of Jota next week.

Apart from that, no one else exactly had a “good” game. We looked so slow and lethargic in our play and Watford just looked up for it a lot more than we did.

Jota had another poor game, although in the second half there were a few breaks that just didn’t go his way and that says everything about his season so far. He needs to be dropped for next game just to give him a rest and to give Cavaleiro a start.

Starting with the same team for 9 games running has its perks but it also has its downsides too as quite a few players looked tired, especially the ones on international break. That’s not an excuse for why we lost but you could see that it clearly affected how we played.

Jimenez probably didn’t get back until Thursday from his Mexico game on the Wednesday so he would have had little time to recover and that explains him coming off quite early. Definitely his worst game in a wolves shirt too but at least now, the squad has a full week to recover.

Neves and Moutinho were both poor and when they have bad games, the whole team suffers. They’re so key to how we play and we lost the midfield battle completely. Moutinho got caught out quite a few times which was surprising and Neves seemed to lose his head in the second half, along with Jota, probably due to Lee Mason’s incompetence.

It was a bad day at the office and we just need to put it back right for next week. Hopefully having a full week to recover this time will be more beneficial, especially as it was the first international break in a long while or ever for some players.

Next time, I think Nuno might do things differently after an international break in terms of team selection but you can only learn from mistakes.