I’ve got to say, I really like the noises coming out of Molineux following the appointment of Dean Saunders as manager.
This video was posted by the club yesterday, which contains interviews with Dave Edwards, Steve Morgan and, most importantly, the man himself, Dean Saunders.
Couple his comments here with some of the quotes from Saunders and Morgan on the Express & Star’s website, and you’ve got what sounds to my ears to be a club that has finally admitted what the problem was and is moving to sort it out.
And the club seem to be placing the blame for the current league position and the FA Cup exit, firmly at the feet of a bunch of lazy, unmotivated players.
There’s talk of players with poor timekeeping, unable to make it to the training ground by 10 am. What? 10 am starts and still not able to get there on time? Madness.
Dean Saunders seems to be a football enthusiast first and foremost. And that must be good. He’s talking about effort and work rate in addition to ‘playing football’ and tactics. And at the end of the day, that’s what will keep the Molineux crowd happy.
For all the talk of a change of football philosophy under Solbakken, the simple fact remains that Wolves fans have been brought up on fast-paced attacking football, preferably with two flying wingers, supplemented by hard work in winning the ball back when we lose it (which, to be fair, is a lot). That’s one of the reasons that Mick McCarthy did so well. He understood the type of football the club wants to play. Not the football the chairman/owner wants to play. Not the football that the pundits think should be played, but the type of football that is built into the very DNA of this great old club.
Face it, the majority of Wolves fans would rather see blood and thunder, up and at ‘um than tippy-tappy, let’s try and be Barcelona any day.
And there’s nothing wrong with up and at ‘um, blood and thunder. Sure, it won’t win any of our players the Ballon d’Or, but then, it seems that trophy is now called the Ballon d’Messi these days anyway. But Wolves football, played properly is as entertaining as it comes. And isn’t that the reason we watch football? To be entertained?
So it looks to me that Dean Saunders could be the right man at the right time. Time will tell, but I really do hope he is. Either way, as always with Wolves, it’ll be one hell of a ride.
Related articles
- Wolves confirm Saunders as boss (bbc.co.uk)
- Wolves task excites Saunders (skysports.com)
- Dean Saunders Arrives (Wolves Blog)