At 21:00 BST on Sunday night, the 8th round of the English Premier League will feature a marquee match, with Wolves hosting the mighty Manchester City. Prior to the match, Wolves boss Gary O'Neil spoke candidly in a press conference about the team's current performance, the atmosphere on the training ground, and the progress made from the match against Brentford.
Lessons learned from the tournament and the work plan before and after the international tournament day.
O'Neill began by reviewing the team's performance this season, saying that the scores were "very bad" and becoming the team's biggest critic. He mentioned that although the team performed well against some tough opponents, the result of only one point in seven rounds of matches was clearly unsatisfactory. However, O'Neill did not lose confidence, saying that the team has enough reasons to turn things around and has full confidence in himself and the team to prove themselves in the upcoming matches.
Speaking about the atmosphere on the training ground, O'Neill emphasized the need for the team to be clear about their position and goals. He mentioned that the team signed a couple of new players late in the transfer window and will need time to adapt and gel. At the same time, he agreed that these two weeks are a good time to observe and improve and will try to get the team back to its best.
For the match against Brentford
of the loss, O'Neill said it was a shot in the arm and made the team realize that they needed to give it their all no matter who they were playing. He noted that the team made incredible mistakes in that game that caused the situation to spiral out of control. He hopes that such a lesson will make the players more focused and committed to avoid repeating the mistakes in future games.
In terms of the work plan before and after the international break, O'Neill said that the team will focus on how to improve their performance and specifically mentioned that the preparation for the match against Manchester City will be different from other matches. He emphasized that the team needs to make sure that their mental state is not affected by past losses and that they are in the best possible shape for the upcoming challenges.
