NafisaWolves were defeated by Crystal Palace last night, and the season is threatening to end on a flat note.
After recently enjoying a six-game winning run in the Premier League, Wolves have now suffered three consecutive defeats – and the showing against Palace was possibly the poorest under Vitor Pereira to date.
Despite netting two goals, Wolves rarely posed a real threat in the match and then found it difficult to cope with Palace’s pace on the break and sharpness.
Before the clash, Pereira had spoken about Wolves taking inspiration from Palace going into the next campaign, and last night’s encounter only underlined that there is currently a clear gap between the two teams.
It was a rather worrying performance at Selhurst Park, and Wolves must react in their final fixture against Brentford. Ultimately, there remains the motivation of securing a win and boosting their prize money earnings.
Following the match, Pereira addressed the display – and also delivered a subtle message to his bosses regarding the forthcoming transfer period.
Vitor Pereira hints he needs a big summer as Wolves easily beaten by Crystal Palace:
Pereira was left unimpressed by last night’s showing.
The Portuguese boss criticised the errors his players committed during the game, which ultimately left them with too much to recover from.
Not for the first time this term we’ve seen Strand Larsen make a difference for Wolves, but the impact has ultimately gone unrewarded.
Pereira was irritated by the errors his side committed, and then sent a pointed message to Fosun about the need to build competition within the squad.
He said: (via E&S): “Of course we need players. We need to be stronger next season, competing for every game.
“Today, in the moment we are competing for the result, another mistake. I’m disappointed.
“What I learned is that with this level of focus we cannot compete with these kind of teams.
“It means next season we must be better, we must compete inside.
“If you don’t concede inside then you have problems, you must compete inside the club every day in training.
“You must have competition for your position.”
Fosun have been warned:
The display against Palace was underwhelming, but it’s a pattern we’ve seen around this stage of the season for the past few years from Wolves.
But Pereira’s reaction to it was defiant, and supporters will welcome that.
We’ve now heard him on multiple occasions stress the importance of a major summer, and he’s applied pressure on Fosun to support him.
Fosun – who operate under a self-sustaining structure at Wolves – have surely recognised the excellent job he’s done overall, and there’s a compelling case that if they back Pereira fully, Wolves could once again contend for European qualification.
That said, some Wolves supporters have voiced their anxiety about the approaching summer window.
After Gary O’Neil, Julen Lopetegui and Bruno Lage all voiced frustrations over limited backing, the hope is Fosun won’t repeat the same errors with Pereira this time around.
Nafisa
