logo
How Wolves can become a Premier League 'middleweight' club

How Wolves can become a Premier League 'middleweight' club

BBC News14-05-2025

Age-old wisdom asserts that the league table tells the truth in the long run - and certainly by mid-May. Wolves' recent experience fits entirely with this, in so far as their recent six-match winning run came, freakishly, against the six clubs currently ranked below them.Last Friday, Vitor Pereira warded off any thoughts their final three games might be an anti-climax by suggesting that their opponents – Brighton, Crystal Palace and Brentford, all set to finish in the middle third – are clubs that Wolves should realistically be able to match next season.The Brighton game supported his thesis. There did not appear to be much between the teams in the general flow of the match, but Brighton found the precision at both ends to tilt things their way.Now and then, Wolves produced some attractive passing, Matheus Cunha in particular getting the crowd cooing in the first half as he showed off his repertoire. But Brighton's less flashy work eventually took a grip on the game while Wolves spun their wheels. Mats Wieffer made himself Cunha's menacing shadow, forcing the blunder that set up the result. Wolves were not bad - just ineffective."In the first half we competed, created some chances to finish, but missed the last shot or last pass… one or two mistakes," said Pereira. "We played a lot with our heart in the second half, but without intelligence to control the pace. When [it] goes to this kind of match, with transitions and counter-attack transitions, we win the ball, we lose the ball, and this is not the game that I like because it's unpredictable. In the end, they punished us and they deserved to win."Most of the attention around Wolves' recovery under Pereira has focused, understandably, on the revival of team spirit and getting the fans onside. Certainly the club needed someone to rally behind and fix some urgent problems. The sense that everyone is now pulling broadly in the same direction has been essential to get away from trouble.But Saturday's game illustrated that unity and fighting spirit will only get them so far. To reach Pereira's next checkpoint - and avoiding the relegation stress of two of the past three seasons - will need more work. Perhaps the time available in pre-season can it, fostering the intelligence and sense of control needed against better sides. To that end, Pereira may have found Saturday a more informative, if less enjoyable, experience.Listen to full commentary of Crystal Palace v Wolves at 20:00 BST on Tuesday, 20 May on BBC Radio WM 95.6FM/DAB/FreeviewTune into The West Midlands Football Phone-In from 18:00 on weeknights

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

'Eakin's voice is what Coventry fans will remember'
'Eakin's voice is what Coventry fans will remember'

BBC News

time9 minutes ago

  • BBC News

'Eakin's voice is what Coventry fans will remember'

Tributes have been paid to Coventry City commentator Clive Eakin who has laid down the microphone after 24 years of covering the club for BBC CWR.A special hour-long live show was held at HMV Empire in Coventry for fans and colleagues to reflect on Eakin's career as the voice of a Sky Blues generation."I have been overblown by the reaction after the news was announced," said Eakin, who started working for the BBC in 1988 and began his role covering Coventry in 2001."It's been very touching."Eakin worked across more than 1,200 games and with 14 different permanent managers, watching Coventry go from the Championship down to League Two and back saw the Sky Blues win the League Two play-offs in 2017-18, the League One title in 2019-20 and suffered the FA Cup semi-final heartbreak against Manchester United in April 2024, as well as this year's Championship play-off agony."The biggest thing I can say is you've been through the biggest lows of Coventry City and the highs," said ex-Coventry player Michael Doyle."I think the one constant at the club through all that time has been yourself. I think for a lot of people in Coventry, it will be your voice that they remember."Fellow commentator Clive Tyldesley said: "Football is about memories. To be somebody who becomes part of people's memories of those matches is what makes our job really special and you've done that."You've connected with millions of people that you'll never meet and they think they know you. They trust you because of your knowledge and because of your warmth and your commitment."Listen to In Conversation with Clive Eakin on BBC Sounds.

Boulter makes winning start at 'special' Queen's
Boulter makes winning start at 'special' Queen's

BBC News

time14 minutes ago

  • BBC News

Boulter makes winning start at 'special' Queen's

British number one Katie Boulter made a winning start to her singles campaign at a Queen's tournament she had always "dreamt" of playing at. The 28-year-old overcame a stern test against Australian qualifier Ajla Tomljanovic 7-6 (7-4) 1-6 6-4 in a match of twists and turns on the Andy Murray is the first time Queen's has hosted a women's tournament since 1973 and Boulter said it feels "special" to play on the grass at the iconic west London venue after years of watching the men's tournament."I came out yesterday to watch Andy get his first court [named after him], which is special in itself," she said."To get the women back here feels very special. It's actually something I dreamt of, having come here the last couple of years to watch the men play, so I'm just really grateful to be on this court."The world number 34 is one of six women bidding to become the first Briton to win the women's title at Queen's Club since Ann Jones in Raducanu takes on Spanish qualifier Cristina Bucsa in her first-round match on Tuesday, while wildcard Francesca Jones takes on American McCartney Heather Watson beat Kazakhstan's Yulia Putintseva 6-4 6-3 to set up a last-16 meeting with fourth seed Elena Rybakina. Boulter got a feel for the grass in her doubles victory alongside Raducanu on Monday but faced a tough challenge in Tomljanovic in her first singles match of the season on the navigated a tricky hold where she saw off break points before impressively breaking to love, she missed the opportunity at 5-4 to serve out the Boulter relied on her serve to get her out of trouble in the first-set tie-break, smashing a forehand winner to take the set in just over an things spiralled rapidly for Boulter in set two as she struggled to find any rhythm, falling down a double break and struggling to find the having relied so heavily on a strong serve in the first set, she double-faulted on the first point of the opening game in the decider, laying the foundations for Tomljanovic to on a run of six games without a win for Boulter, the home crowd was flat and struggled to provide the Briton with the boost she came soon after, though, as Boulter immediately broke back and rediscovered some momentum to win three games in a to-ing and fro-ing followed as neither player could hold their serve but Boulter eventually kept her calm at 4-4, holding serve before taking the match when Tomljanovic's forehand dropped will face Poland's Magdalena Frech or fifth seed Diana Shnaider in the next round.

When does the first summer transfer window close before Club World Cup?
When does the first summer transfer window close before Club World Cup?

The Independent

time14 minutes ago

  • The Independent

When does the first summer transfer window close before Club World Cup?

The first transfer window of the summer is set to come to close as teams face a race against time to get deals over the line ahead of the Club World Cup. This early-June mini window is a fresh alteration to summer transfer proceedings - an additional registration period created by Fifa which national associations could adopt if they had teams involved in the inaugural competition, which starts in the United States on June 14. The Premier League opted to take on the new window, allowing Manchester City and Chelsea to make signings before the start of the tournament. Both have been active in the 10-day period, with City having completed the signing of Wolves left-back Rayan Ait-Nouri, while Chelsea have acquired Ipswich striker Liam Delap. And while numerous of other clubs have taken advantage of the window, with the likes of Liverpool and Manchester United also completing transfers, teams have just a few hours left until the transfer window slams shut again. Here is everything you need to know about the pre-Club World Cup transfer deadline. When does the first summer transfer window close? The transfer window traditionally closes at 11pm BST, but an earlier deadline of 7pm has been put in place for the short window which shuts on Tuesday 10 June. The earlier deadline is intended to allow club and league officials to complete their work at more sociable hours rather than still be at their desks well beyond midnight. When does the summer transfer window reopen? The main summer transfer window will reopen on June 16 and runs until September 1, on which a deadline of 7pm will also be in place.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store