Wolves were beaten 2-0 by Aston Villa on Saturday – but there is a chance for Gary O’Neil to put things right on Tuesday with Burnley next up in the Premier League.
Wanderers lost at Villa Park, with O’Neil’s side struggling with key players.
The likes of Matheus Cunha, Pedro Neto, Hwang Hee-chan and Craig Dawson were all unavailable, and the manager had to use young Leon Chiwome up front.
Despite his best efforts, it was a struggle for the 18-year-old, but the support for him wasn’t great.
It was always going to be a tall order for Wolves to get a good result against a solid side pushing for Champions League football.
But Wolves have the chance to go again on Tuesday – and Andy Thompson believes Tommy Doyle should drop to the bench…
Andy Thompson explains why Tommy Doyle should drop to the bench against Burnley, despite playing well v Aston Villa
Thompson appeared on Wolves’ Matchday Live Extra show to offer his thoughts about the defeat to Villa.
Wanderers actually did fairly well in the first 20 minutes or so, and knocked the ball around with real confidence. That came as a surprise, and it was a shame Rayan Ait-Nouri couldn’t convert the golden chance he had.
Key to that period of dominance was Doyle, who was really dictating things from a deep midfield position. Pundit Paul Robinson noted that he was ‘integral’ to Wolves’ good start in the game.
He can be fairly pleased with his overall performance at Villa Park. But in the eyes of Thompson, he should not keep his place for the next game with Burnley.
He said: “For me, I think Ait-Nouri should play up the top line. Lemina didn’t look happy where he was playing. I think our best pair in there (the middle) at the moment, even though I think Doyle has played well, I think Lemina and Gomes are my pair in the middle. And I think it’s Gary O’Neil’s pair in there. Because of injuries, he’s had to play Lemina out wide.”
Thompson went on to say that he thinks Hugo Bueno should play at left wing-back, so that Ait-Nouri can play as a winger, allowing Lemina to come back inside next to Gomes.
“I just still think O’Neil’s preferred partnership if everybody is fit would be Gomes and Lemina, for me,” he added.
Lemina is wasted on the left
It will be very interesting to see what O’Neil does against Burnley on Tuesday.
It definitely feels like putting Lemina on the left isn’t the answer, because his tenacity and energy is just so valuable in the middle along with Gomes’.
Doyle actually did play well against Villa so it would be harsh to drop him back to the bench.
If he wants to try and control the game against Burnley then he might keep Doyle in there. But there is every chance he saw that performance from Lemina on Saturday and will feel he is wasting one of his best players.