Gary O’Neil was disappointed with the way his Wolves side let a lead slip with a few pieces of sloppy defending against Crystal Palace.
Although the head coach admits the team did not do enough to deserve the victory under the lights at Molineux, having turned the game around after falling behind to the Eagles thanks to a triple substitution which saw Mario Lemina, Jean-Ricner Bellegarde and Goncalo Guedes provide a much-needed spark, O’Neil felt Wolves could have done more to claim their first Premier League win of the season.
On letting a lead slip
“We’re disappointed that we didn't come out on top. It was sort of slow and then they scored at a moment where we were probably the better side, a really soft mix up at the back, and we didn't really look like conceding at that moment. When you go 1-0 down in a in a Premier League game, a big game, it needed a response, and we definitely got that.
“I thought the three substitutes made a big impact on the game. The game looked like it potentially could drift away from us at that moment, but the impetus that Guedes and Mario and JJ gave us when they came on, and the lift it gave us, we had an opportunity to get ourselves back in front, so we’re disappointed because we thought we'd go on to win it from there.
“We scored two really good goals, which is disappointing because theirs are soft and messy. A nothing cross that gets headed out of Jose's hands, and disappointing ways to concede again when we're having to work very hard. A couple of really good goals and some other really good moves that created some chances, a great chance for Pablo, some other real good bits, but it’s about winning, and we haven't managed to win yet.”
On a nervy atmosphere
“There were some nervy moments in the game the whole way through from us. There was some decision making that didn't go how they should. But the second goal, no one's made a glaring error in it, we should get contact on Munoz before he gets his header, and we work on it and practice it a lot, and we didn't manage to get contact on him, then he manages to get the first contact and they tap it in at the back post.
“But it was a decent game, some decent moments in it for us, but not enough for me to be able to stand here and say we thoroughly deserve to win that. It was a fairly even encounter where two teams were going at it, where, even though we got ourselves into a position where we look like we might win, we weren't quite able to get it done.”
On the triple substitution
“I thought it helped us. We’ve got squad and we need to use it. There's nothing wrong with Tommy Doyle's performance but Crystal Palace are a physical side and they play long a lot. There wasn't a lot of time on the ball, so Mario's physicality and his strength and what he gave us in there for the last half an hour was massive.
“It completely changed how the game flowed and how the game went. There's never anything against the people that come off, they're on there, they give everything they can, and we changed to try and make us better and it definitely did.
“There’s frustration [from the fans] around the results and where we are in the table, of course. But Joao was excellent, Mario came on and he was excellent. We can leave Tommy Doyle on for every minute of every game, if we want, but we have a lot of good midfielders and we need to use the right ones for the right situation, and Mario made us a lot better today.”
On Palace’s late chance to make it three
“I haven't watched it back in slow motion or any detail. I saw an image of Sa with a couple of hands on the ball, and then the Crystal Palace boy has influenced him enough to make him drop it, so I’m not sure as I haven't really watched it.
“I'd have to watch it back, but there were a few little decisions in the game, but nothing really. The one Guedes gets booked for, for diving, is a foul with contact on him. There's always little bits and pieces like that, but for me, it looked like Jose’s in control of the ball with two hands.”
On frustration showed by the fans
“I've got zero concern from my position. I enjoyed tonight, I enjoyed helping the lads, and they are giving absolutely everything. It was going to be a tough season for us, we knew that, it was expected to be a tough season last season, and we managed to make sure that it wasn't.
“A few things have changed again and it's going to be tough. We're going to have to have to fight and scrap, and going to have to give everything, and everyone in that room is, as you can see. It's another incredible response to going behind, so everyone's given everything, and we keep fighting.
“We get 90 minutes to deliver our message and they know the situation. They know what we have available to us, they know the results we've had, they see the performances, so they're obviously entitled and welcome to respond in any way they want.
“It won't change a thing of what I do. I'm working to help the group in every moment, and again, we showed real courage, real character, some quality, and Premier League games are tough, and unfortunately, we didn't quite manage to come out on top today.”
