Wolves lost 1-0 in a crucial fixture against West Ham. Wolverhampton Wanderers’ hopes of a top 4 finish continue to fade. Let us take a look at the Wolves’ player ratings and how they performed.
The match ended as a sucker punch to Wolves‘ top 4 hopes as they continue to lose points. This was their second defeat in as many games. Bruno Lage’s side finds themselves in a bit of a slumber. A Tomas Soucek goal just before half-time was enough to give West Ham the win. Wolves are currently 8th and 2 points off Tottenham also having played a game more.
WOLVES PLAYER RATINGS
GOALKEEPER
Jose Sa – 6: The goalkeeper produced a couple of routine stops in the first half. However, he didn’t stand a chance with Soucek’s goal.
DEFENDERS
Ki-Jana Hoever – 4: Replacing Nelson Semedo is no easy task and However might have spurned his chance with a below-par showing. The youngster hasn’t played in two months and seemed to be off the pace
Max Kilman – 4.5: Kilman was unusually lax in possession. Antonio took advantage and drifted in behind the centre-back to tee up Soucek’s goal. You can count Kilman’s poor games this season on one hand, and this was one of them.
Conor Coady – 6: He avoided a repeat of the game at the London Stadium last season when Antonio ripped him to shreds, but Coady struggled to get to grips with West Ham’s centre-forward.
Romain Saiss – 6.5: Saiss was the best of the back three and made a vital interception to prevent West Ham from adding a second goal with around 20 minutes to go. The Moroccan moved to left-back for the final 15 minutes as Lage went 4-4-2.
Marcal – 6: The returning left wing-back was quite solid up against the in-form Bowen before being sacrificed late on.
MIDFIELDERS
Ruben Neves – 5.5: The Portuguese midfielder’s passing wasn’t particularly crisp. West Ham’s pairing of Rice and Soucek found plenty of space behind him.
Leander Dendoncker – 5: Dendoncker is rarely effective in a midfield two these days, and he struggled to influence proceedings in the capital. He tended to just pass the ball a couple of yards to Neves whenever he got it, refusing to take responsibility, and wasn’t able to combat the threat of Rice and Soucek.
FORWARDS
Francisco Trincao – 4: Trincao frustrated the Wolves supporters inside the London Stadium, and Lage didn’t look entirely pleased with him at times. When Trincao is on it, he looks superb, but far too often he becomes a passenger when Wolves aren’t having it their way.
Fabio Silva – 6: Silva worked himself into some good positions in the second half but couldn’t get the better of Zouma. He linked the play well and has more of a presence about him these days, but he needs to add goals to his game.
Hwang Hee-chan – 5.5: Hwang worked tirelessly for the team, but he wasted Wolves’ big chance when it arrived in first-half stoppage time. The South Korean is in the team for his finishing abilities, and he failed to deliver today.
WOLVES SUBSTITUTES PLAYER RATINGS
Daniel Podence – 6: One of the better players. Lage shouldn’t have left Podence – who was one of the Wolves’ best players on Thursday against Arsenal – on the bench.
Pedro Neto – 6: Added speed and creativity to a lacklustre attack.
Raul Jimenez – N/A: Didn’t have enough minutes to make an impact.
Not used: Ruddy, Boly, Jonny, Ait-Nouri, Moutinho, Cundle
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