Joining Mikey Burrows was co-commentator and Wolves Hall of Fame full-back Andy Thompson, as well as legendary Wolves Women defender Claire Hakeman as they analysed the gold and black securing a well-earned draw against Brentford.
The trio also spoke about the rotating of Nelson Semedo and Jonny at right-back, Boubacar Traore’s tireless efforts in the centre of midfield and the attacking decisions Steve Davis will have to make in the next three matches after Diego Costa saw red.
On the right-back conundrum
Hakeman said: “Semedo had a good first-half against Crystal Palace, but he was probably at fault for both goals in the second. He’s a solid player and brings something different in terms of how he can link up with Adama as well.
“The last few weeks, Jonny just not looked like the players we’ve seen previously. Maybe that’s a bit of confidence affecting his performance because we know there’s one hell of a player in him. The last couple of weeks, he’s looked a bit nervy and uncomfortable, so Semedo is a fantastic option for us. I want to see him linking up with Adama as much as possible to try and make an impact in the final third.”
Thompson added: “I just think at the moment that Jonny needs to come out. We looked at him on Saturday against Leicester and he looked heavy-legged and lethargic – which is unlike him. It’s very unlike him, but he looked like he was struggling throughout the game. It won’t do him any harm coming out and I think Semedo just gives us that little bit more going forward.”
On taking the positives from a point
Hakeman said: “There’s definitely some positives for us to take. We said earlier about getting some kind of result out of it, and the stat that only Arsenal have won at Brentford, it shows that it’s a hard place to go and their home record is really good.
“A point is a positive result, but I think there’s an air of frustration because they were there for the taking. There were moments in that game, there were quite a few decent chances and maybe we didn’t quite make the most of them which would have got us the three points today.
“But a point is a positive and it sets us off. There were quite a few positive points on the pitch today which will give us the confidence going forward for the next couple of games.”
Big effort, @daniel_podence. 🔋
— Wolves (@Wolves) October 31, 2022
🔢@ItsTradeNation pic.twitter.com/Je9Txgc3xl
On a solid defensive showing
Thompson said: “The game became more open in the second-half and both teams were looking to counter attack on each other but the defences stood pretty strong for the majority of it. Until that moment when they took a short corner, we switched off outside of the box and inside of the box, the ball’s come back in and Ben Mee’s volleyed it in, despite two of our players were there.
“One, the cross should have been blocked and not been allowed to come in, and secondly, to allow him to score when there were two players next to him – they should have got closer to Ben Mee for the volley that he had.
“That wasn’t great defending, but generally throughout the game, I thought the two centre-halves did very well. It didn’t help that Semedo got booked after 30 seconds because he then had to be careful for the rest of the game, but I thought Bueno down the left played very well. He grew into the game, they tried to isolate him and get the Brentford lads at him to see if he would fold, but he didn’t, and probably in the second-half became much stronger.”
On Bueno making the step up
Hakeman said: “It looks effortless for him. His contribution is not just in the defensive side, but it’s how aggressive he is when going forward, so he’s been a really positive outlet for us going forward in the final third, which is everything we saw for the under-23s.
“There’s always that worry of, ‘Can they do it? Can they cut it in the Premier League?’ We know how big of a step-up that is, but he’s been excellent and he’s more than justified his selection for the last three games. He’s a bit more direct [than Ait-Nouri]. With Ait-Nouri, the one criticism of him is that he sometimes does a little too much. He always wants to take one more touch and do that little bit extra, but Bueno is such a talent.
“He’s so direct and puts really quality deliveries into the box. His crosses today were superb, but I think his defensive side is what needs to improve, but he’s done himself complete justice and is a real positive to take out of the last few games. I can’t see him losing his place now – maybe the Leeds game, but aside from that, he deserves to be playing.”
Another solid performance from Hugo Bueno.
— Wolves (@Wolves) October 30, 2022
👏🇪🇸 pic.twitter.com/ei9WU3MB5o
On Boubacar adding intensity to midfield
Thompson said: “I thought he played well. We talk about somebody in midfield chasing things down and closing things down and he did that. I said kin the last game that he played that he’s probably a little bit eager, but it’s just showing you that’s what we probably need after last week’s performance.
“He makes the odd mistake and he’s sometimes in two minds about his decision making, but he’s still learning. He’s still a young lad, and those are the things you can see from him. But there’s no doubt about it, the way that he closes people down and the way that he rushes in, is what we’ve needed.
“He will make mistakes, but I’d rather have his eagerness and the way he tries to win things in the team than not at all. He wants to try and win every ball, and sometimes you can’t, but he will learn from that.”
On attacking options while Costa’s suspended
Hakeman said: “The really pleasing thing for me, is that Podence’s form has been brilliant. He was excellent today, he was very creative throughout and we know he’s got goals in him. He’s already scored a couple this season, so he is a real outlet for us.
“Although, he should really have scored and given it a better go with that shot he had in the first-half, but I think the combination for me would be Podence, Hwang and Traore. Go with that and then have Guedes as an option off the bench.”
Thompson added: “I’m looking through the other players and one that sticks out to me is Chem Campbell. It would be an interesting one to see if he could start a game. With Steve Davis being in charge, it’s an opportunity for him, knowing all the young lads coming through and having confidence in them, it will be interesting to see if he does give more of the young lads an opportunity in there.”
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