(Image via getwestlondon.co.uk)
Brentford 4-0 Wolves
And I thought the Derby game was embarrassing.
What was served up at Griffin Park today was nothing short of scandalous. Without littering this piece with expletives I can’t begin to describe how much of an inept performance this was, it was as bad as it gets.
Looking back at the Leeds game where we totally controlled the 2nd half and deserved the win, we all came out of Elland Road hearing that Birmingham had been hammered 8-0 at home thinking the upcoming game against them wouldn’t be as cut and dried as that score would have it seem.
Since that day, anything that can go wrong has gone wrong. The base on which success was built upon last season, the excellent defensive record, has simply evaporated. How on earth can a team who break club records for clean sheets in a season, then go on, just 6 months later, to concede 14 goals in 4 games?
It just doesn’t make any sense.
As if that isn’t bad, in the 4 straight defeats we haven’t even looked like competing in the games let alone score. We all had a bit of banter with Villa fans about how they had to cancel their goal of the month competition but we now have to do the same for November.
Despite all this, the first half against Brentford wasn’t too bad and to go in at the break behind was probably unjust. Danny Graham was unlucky with a header that hit the bar from a Van La Parra cross and if that had gone in things might have been different.
But when Judge was allowed time on the edge of the box to effectively pick his spot, he duly delivered stroking the ball into the bottom corner. As has been the story of the last month or so, once the goal went in heads dropped and Evans was getting a lot of verbals from his team-mates which you don’t really like to see.
Yes he made a mistake to allow Judge the chance but earlier in the season there would have been pats on the backs and players trying to lift each other. not so anymore.
That was as good as it got though as when the teams came out for the second half without Golbourne, who had looked good on his return, there never seemed like the players wanted it at all.
There was no urgency, no hint of any game plan. it was pass it for a couple of minutes then hit a long ball, utter rubbish.
Brentford on the other hand played the type of football Wolves supposed to be playing, passing fluid football, working as a team, closing down and they did it well.
As soon as the 2nd went in, hundreds of supporters in the terracing started making their way out of the ground. even with 15 minutes left. It was a lethal blow, Prichard was allowed to run and cross for Dallas who was virtually unmarked in the middle of goal who again, placed the ball into the bottom corner.
The 3rd came from the same scenario, a break away after Wolves dallied and messed about with the ball rather than try to create something. Gray was allowed to run unchecked and get his shot away into the bottom corner of the net.
It was clear that Brentford had been drilled on breakaways and finishing and they executed the plan perfectly.
When the board for injury time went up I left. I can count on one hand the amount of times I’ve left a game early in the 19 seasons of being a season ticket holder but the thought of sitting in traffic and suffering another 5 minutes added on time was not worth it.
Turning talkSPORT on in the car to hear the final score was 4-0 wasn’t even a surprise.
It was fully deserved.
Where do things go from here? Back to League One at the rate we are going. There are so many problems its hard to know which needs fixing most.
Danny Batth has somehow survived the axe in these last couple of months despite being the worst defender of the 4. In this time, Stearman and Golbourne have both been dropped and nothing has changed. He may well be from Brierley Hill, but at the minute he’s a liability and needs a rest. Rowe isn’t a left back as I’ve said many times in these blogs, but he is also it seems not suited in midfield either. McDonald might react well to having his starting place took off him for the first time in his Wolves career but when he came on as sub today nothing changed.
What is worrying though is that Saville now seems to be firmly in Jacketts plans and he is atrocious. He is not the same player he was at Brentford last season at all.
If you didn’t know better you would think he was channelling the footballing spirit of Jamie O’Hara the way he labours around the pitch, screaming at people and not doing anything constructive himself.
Things are a mess and the way Bournemouth are playing, they could slaughter us next Saturday.
S.K.Hall
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