[Archived] Wolves Preview

[Exiled_Rover]

I think tashor in the sam thread has summed up my feelings very well.

Only seen 2 minutes of match highlights in which MGP swung in a fantastic free kick which samba would have scored from had he a forward's instinct, another free kick from which MGP hit the post and then an absolute peach of a ball perfectly timed for Roberts to fluff his 1 on 1 but Dunny smacked in for number 3.

MGP must have been awful the rest of the time to get some of the reviews on here.

He was. His long throw ins always hit the first man, invariably one wearing a Wolves shirt. I'd start Emerton and Diouf next match if we continue with this formation and put Pedersen on the bench.

[American]

The passer was the main culprit on the first goal (Mancienne could have done better, but his teammate shouldn't have put him in that position), but he left Givet totally unmarked in a great position for the second.

[Veevs]

A couple of people asked where NZonzi was.. he got himself injured in the french U21 game.

[Stuart]

A couple of people asked where NZonzi was.. he got himself injured in the french U21 game.

He was at the game though. I saw him getting into his Range Rover after the match.

[cletus]

A good well earned & much needed win

Rovers played some good stuff at times yesterday, although Wolves were rubbish & must surely be one of the favourites to go down.

The atmosphere in the ground was a bit sterile at times. It needed our 2nd goal to liven it up a bit.

I witnessed a one or two objects being thrown from the Wolves area onto Rovers fans below......but they were getting lots of stick from some of the Rovers fans.

I also thought the stewarding outside the ground (pre-match) was a bit 'pub bouncer-ish'. They were checking fans for 'i don`t know what?' (they didn`t explain what they were checking for) & went about their business quite brashly. A guy infront of us squared up to one of the 'bouncers' demanding to be shown a bit of respect....as the bouncer was acting like a ####ing Hitler. I can understand the guys anger.

Anyway, apart form the ####s on the doors, a most enjoyable day was had

[benhben]

Noticed Kalinic never got on. Anyone know if he still isnt match fit or Allardyce doesnt fancy him much.

[Exiled_Rover]

Noticed Kalinic never got on. Anyone know if he still isnt match fit or Allardyce doesnt fancy him much.

Allardyce thinks he's wasted £6m on a 21 year old and is determined to never play him again.

Well that or the fact Samba was injured and had to be replaced, using up a valuable substitution.

[philipl]

Noticed Kalinic never got on. Anyone know if he still isnt match fit or Allardyce doesnt fancy him much.

Sam's public comments are extremely upbeat about Kalinic. I guess the Forest game cannot come too soon to give him 90 minutes.

[gumboots]

Well that or the fact Samba was injured and had to be replaced, using up a valuable substitution.

Exactly the reason. And presumably the 2 other subs were planned as far as subs can be to give a short spell on the pitch to Salgado and Emerton. And if you put Samba in the penalty area and ask pedersen to throw in to him, the opposition soon get wise to him and double up making it very hard for him to get a head on the ball. the long throw in tactics are presumably up to the manager to sort out and we need a lot more variety if anyone taking corners and throw ins is to have success. Yes, we need better corners and throw ins too, but just to blame Pedersen is short sighted. He plays to instructions in terms of style.

[DeadlyDirk]

Well fantastic to get our first league win of the season and to continue getting some points on the board, I'm confident we've moved away from our mini slump now. All was important today was getting the win and ideally with a few goals, we managed to do that and can really take confidence from it.

We've played fairly well in all of our games this season in my opinion and we only added to that yesterday which was a bonus on top of the win. I wasn't overly concerned about our hopes for the season before the game but this really was a vital match, had we lost it it would have been one more game without a win which only would have made it harder to get off the mark in the future.

Now that's all out of the way and we know we can at least win games again I think we can move forward and can be very positive about our hopes for the season, we've played well and at least competed in all our games so far, we have people returning from injury like Emerton, Nelsen Di Santo and also people like Salgado getting close to being fully match fit. For the time being at least we only have a few knocks in the squad and there is plenty of compeitition for places which can only be a good thing.

[CrazyIvan]

There are some comical comments on here about the match. Some people are so blinkered and biased that they'll write what they beleive even if the evidence is right in front of them.

Yesterday, after a slightly shakey start, our midfield was superb. Grella and Andrews made some superb passes from the centre so that players could break forward. Grella for Dunn in the first half and Andrews for Jacobsen in the second were two examples that lead to really good attacking play. Andrews was all over the pitch, closing down and making runs into the box. He had by far his best game in a Rovers shirt and it is a shame his freekick didn't go in, it was a decent save from a really well hit shot. I couldn't fault many players yesterday. Roberts was getting pulled, pushed, bashed and barged all game and rarely won a free kick. Robbo had a couple of moments but nothing too bad. Pedersens corners were woeful to be honest but his general play was excellent. The pass to Roberts for the third goal was sublime. We won this game because Rovers players were up for it and played very well. Two memorable passages of play were when Diouf and Chimbonda were in the corner with the ball surrounded by 4 Wolves players and played their way out of the corner brilliantly. Another was early in the first half where a Wolves attack broke down and some first touch passing took the ball from deep in our own half to well into theirs while under considerable pressure from Wolves players. Generally the passing and movement was excellent. A game and a performance to be pleased with.

[Exiled_Rover]

Exactly the reason. And presumably the 2 other subs were planned as far as subs can be to give a short spell on the pitch to Salgado and Emerton. And if you put Samba in the penalty area and ask pedersen to throw in to him, the opposition soon get wise to him and double up making it very hard for him to get a head on the ball. the long throw in tactics are presumably up to the manager to sort out and we need a lot more variety if anyone taking corners and throw ins is to have success. Yes, we need better corners and throw ins too, but just to blame Pedersen is short sighted. He plays to instructions in terms of style.

Pedersen is a grown man, he can think for himself. If Samba is marked by two players throw it elsewhere - it's not rocket science. That said as all Gamst does is look towards the bench for encouragement I can understand why he's unable to make that decision.

There's no excuse for not clearing the first man on set pieces and Pedersen failed to do that time and again yesterday - he's in the team for his set pieces (as he's crap in open play) so he needs to 'pull his finger out' sharpish.

[grizfoot]

At the game I didn't quite realise what a superb ball Pedersen played for the third goal, was a world-class pass straight into the path of Roberts. If you add to the fact that Pedersen had two very good attempts from free-kicks it makes you actually realise he had a very good game despite being largely uninvolved for a lot of the game.

[thenodrog]

At the game I didn't quite realise what a superb ball Pedersen played for the third goal, was a world-class pass straight into the path of Roberts. If you add to the fact that Pedersen had two very good attempts from free-kicks it makes you actually realise he had a very good game despite being largely uninvolved for a lot of the game.

Just as an aside, in all these stats published nowadays it's fact that Dunny scored but who gets credited with the assist? Roberts for his clumsy stumble or Pederson for that superb pass?

[Bobby G]

Grella getting better game by game. As long as he stays fit then its likely he will continue to improve. We all know he is a decent player if not disrupted by injury.

I can see a midfield duo of Grella sitting, and Emerton as a preferred option to Grella and Andrews. Lets see how Sam sees Emerton for us. Maybe left wing?

[spencey7]

As expected, hysterical over-reactions abound as to how incredible we were yesterday.

Reality check:

- We were playing a depleted newly-promoted team

- We started with one up front - sorry - ROBERTS up front (much worse)

- The first goal was from a catastrophic error, and Diouf did his best to miss it

- The second was again comical defending (great "finish" from Roberts though...)

- The third goal was the typical "RUN!"-*barge*-*stumble*-"clumsy, hit shift + 8 again!!!" sequence from Roberts who fortunately didn't manage to blast the ball wide before Dunny tapped it in.

Dunn was tremendous, his gut-busting run late in the game for the third goal certainly bodes well. Pedersen was a touch of class as always, but it's a shame to see him pump the ball forward so quickly all the time. As against Gillingham, Andrews and Roberts were playing at their level.

Without that win the Allardyce "era" would have been over if Burnley get a result in October, but he may have bought himself a few more games. We can't rely on the weaknesses of other teams to get us points this season.

We know now how we're going to be lining up, and we know Jason Roberts and Keith Andrews are two of the first names on the teamsheet.

[philipl]

Grella getting better game by game. As long as he stays fit then its likely he will continue to improve. We all know he is a decent player if not disrupted by injury.

I can see a midfield duo of Grella sitting, and Emerton as a preferred option to Grella and Andrews. Lets see how Sam sees Emerton for us. Maybe left wing?

Emerton playing left wing is always a total disaster- he checks back onto his right peg every time.

I don't see Grella having a first team future if all of Dunn, Emerton and Reid get back to form and Nzonzi keeps developing at the rate he is.

[thenodrog]

I don't see Grella having a first team future if all of Dunn, Emerton and Reid get back to form and Nzonzi keeps developing at the rate he is.

I'm suprised at you for saying that. It appears that you like some others have developed a closed mind toward Grella. As a deep lying defensive midfielder Grella is streets in front of the first 3 and I have not seen enough of Nzonzi yet to judge him properly.

[LeftWinger]

My ratings from yesterday:

Robinson 6 - Didn't have a great deal to do, flapped at one but made one decent save.

Jacobsen 7 - Thought he looked quite decent getting forward

Givet 8 - A class act, reads the game so well.

Samba 8 - Thought he was very solid defensively.

Chimbonda 7 - Did ok - looks to link up well with Diouf when he comes out to the left

Grella 8 - Far and away his best game in a Rovers shirt. Looks like he a decent range of passing - hope he can get a good run of games

Andrews 8 - Grella sat and passed, Dunn created, but Andrews bombed around everywhere. There was one occasion when he should have passed wide right to Diouf, and instead lobbed it up to Roberts, but that aside he impressed me yesterday. Having said that - it's against the top midfielders he struggles, he's fine against the likes of Wolves.

Dunn 9 - Got caught offside a bit too much, but a huge plus when he can play 90 mins like this. Still a creative talent, just a bit slow.

Diouf 8 - Impressed me

Pedersen 7 - Good ball for Dunn's goal, unlucky with the free-kick, but his corners were poor and his first touch was sometimes bad

Roberts 8 - Useless finished unless it's with his chest, but caused Wolves a lot of problems. Should have had a penalty for me when Hill was all over him in the first half.

Officials 2 - They were appalling. The linesman who was flagging for offside when Pedersen took a thrown in summed them up.

[Hasta]

Just as an aside, in all these stats published nowadays it's fact that Dunny scored but who gets credited with the assist? Roberts for his clumsy stumble or Pederson for that superb pass?

And likewise Dunn get's credited for a goal when it was going in anyway thanks to Robert's run and clumsy stumble.

[philipl]

The still shows what I saw on the TV- Dunn had to put the third in as there was a Wolves player within easy clearing distance of Roberts' bobbled shot.

I haven't seen the game so delighted to hear Grella had an impressive game. But for me his place is under threat unless he produces great performances consistently.

[Parsonblue]

Without that win the Allardyce "era" would have been over if Burnley get a result in October, but he may have bought himself a few more games. We can't rely on the weaknesses of other teams to get us points this season.

If you've listened to anything John Williams has said recently you will know that Sam is going to be here for some time to come. You might think he's on the way out, but I don't believe the Ewood board or the majority of the fans do.

A win for Rovers under Big Sam, Diouf enjoys an excellent game and scores - no wonder you're unhappy. Never mind, perhaps we might get beat next week and that will no doubt cheer you up. You really do have a strange way of supporting this club.

[John]

I haven't seen the game so delighted to hear Grella had an impressive game. But for me his place is under threat unless he produces great performances consistently.

The key for Grella is simply to stay fit. He has not been fit for a long enough period of time to get any momentum going in his game. There have been glimpses and matches where he has shown he is fine player and can only pass the ball around ok.

You would think/hope he would improve if he plays a few games on the spin.

Without that win the Allardyce "era" would have been over if Burnley get a result in October, but he may have bought himself a few more games.

Surely you are on a wind-up here with this and your other comments!!

[roversmum]

The still shows what I saw on the TV- Dunn had to put the third in as there was a Wolves player within easy clearing distance of Roberts' bobbled shot.

I haven't seen the game so delighted to hear Grella had an impressive game. But for me his place is under threat unless he produces great performances consistently.

I thought the same and couldn't understand where the comments that the ball was going in the net were coming from.

[Fife Rover]

A good well earned & much needed win

Rovers played some good stuff at times yesterday, although Wolves were rubbish & must surely be one of the favourites to go down.

The atmosphere in the ground was a bit sterile at times. It needed our 2nd goal to liven it up a bit.

I witnessed a one or two objects being thrown from the Wolves area onto Rovers fans below......but they were getting lots of stick from some of the Rovers fans.

I also thought the stewarding outside the ground (pre-match) was a bit 'pub bouncer-ish'. They were checking fans for 'i don`t know what?' (they didn`t explain what they were checking for) & went about their business quite brashly. A guy infront of us squared up to one of the 'bouncers' demanding to be shown a bit of respect....as the bouncer was acting like a ####ing Hitler. I can understand the guys anger.

Anyway, apart form the ####s on the doors, a most enjoyable day was had

How strange that you should say that Cletus, because my experience yesterday was quite the opposite. I arrived at turnstile H around 2pm and as I went to use my card I was asked very courteously by one of the "bouncers" if he could check the contents of my carrier bag, which I was quite happy to agree to. I then had a little trouble getting my S/T to open the gate,and a steward quickly came to my assistance, and got me through the gate.

Next problem for me (as always) was the stairs up to the concourse. It always takes me at least 5 mins to get up to the concourse with my angina problem, and I have to stop and rest several times on the way up. So when I had rested sufficiently on the concourse with the help of a pint of lager, I set off to my seat on row 1, and on the way I asked a steward at the top of steps leading down to the seats if there was lift anywhere that I could use to reach the concourse. He referred me to the head steward, and when I explained my problems to him he was very helpful and took me along to where the lift was, and explained that from the turnstiles it could only be accessed by using the Disabled entrance. But for this I would need a lift pass which I could get by contacting the club with my S/T details, and explaining my problems with the stairs. All the stewards I spoke to (4 in all) were very helpful and attentive, so I find it remarkable that a number of posters have criticised their conduct yesterday.

Anyway, I now intend to contact the club as advised and see what transpires from that.