Gary O’Neil has now said what he found ‘really pleasing’ about Wolves’ performance against Arsenal.
The odds were stacked against Wolves achieving a result against Arsenal.
Gary O’Neil had seven players sidelined through injury, with the most recent being Craig Dawson, Matheus Cunha and Nelson Semedo.
On top of that, the Wanderers boss only had 10 fit senior outfield players available, which forced him into playing academy striker Tawanda Chirewa and bringing Mario Lemina off the bench to play up front.
No one expected the hosts to get a result against the title chasers and that’s how it planned out with Arsenal running out as 2-0 winners.
The visitors didn’t have it all their way, though, and Mikel Arteta would have known his side were in a game, particularly after David Raya denied Joao Gomes with a top-drawer save and Hugo Bueno fired wide after space opened up.
Gary O’Neil says what he found pleasing about Wolves display vs Arsenal
Under such difficult circumstances, Wolves put in an unbelievable performance, as many were left thinking what could have been if O’Neil had the likes of Pedro Neto, Cunha and Craig Dawson to choose from.
As usual, the Wanderers looked threatening on the break and were well-organised. Arsenal were restricted to limited chances, but unlike Wolves, they took theirs.
A ridiculous toe punt strike from Leandro Trossard and a smart finish from Martin Odegaard took the game away from the hosts.
Yet, O’Neil wasn’t downbeat about the result and found the night enjoyable despite watching his side extend their winless run to five matches.
“An incredible performance, and one of my favourites of the season,” O’Neil told Premier League official.
“For the lads to show the togetherness and workrate that they did and push Arsenal like that was really pleasing. The second goal was disappointing, but an incredible performance. An enjoyable evening and I enjoyed watching the lads.”
What could have been for Wolves if they had a fully fit squad
As O’Neil noted, the hosts pushed the title chasers all the way, but if they had a fully fit squad at their disposal, the match could have taken a different direction.
Of course, Arsenal dominated large spells of possession and looked potent in attack, although Wolves did have their moments and if they had game-changers Cunha and Neto available, they’d have had a far better chance of achieving a result.
The Old Gold can take huge confidence from how they performed and it certainly shows how much they’ve progressed under O’Neil.
Once they get their key first-teamers back from injury and bolster their squad with quality this summer, Wolves can achieve incredible things with O’Neil at the helm.