Crunch time for Wolves in basement battle with Southampton
- Published
The bottom two meet at Molineux on Saturday and both know the possible consequences of defeat.
Wolves need to beat Southampton, that is the blunt assessment of a game which needs to provide them a final springboard in the relegation battle.
Had they lost to Crystal Palace last weekend the Eagles would have been seven points clear and Wolves would have started to become cut adrift.
A draw was the minimum requirement and, following the dramatic comeback at Brighton, there is at least some momentum growing.
Yet after 10 winless games it is all well and good to claim - and possibly fairly from some of the performances - Wolves deserved more points. It is fine to say they competed well against Manchester City, Liverpool, Newcastle and Aston Villa.
But that only carries weight if they beat Southampton at Molineux and if they can get points against Fulham and Bournemouth after the international break, otherwise the previous excuses will wear thin quickly.
It is perhaps harsh to label them excuses, maybe reasons would be better as boss Gary O'Neil - who faces the media at Compton this afternoon - does not hide behind anything, but he will know as well as anyone Wolves need wins and need them now.
