The significant modification Gary O’Neil intends to tackle Wolves’ biggest issue.
Wolves: O’Neil must now find a ‘decent’ summer replacement for Bellegarde.
Gary O’Neil may make numerous changes for the Carabao Cup tie against Ipswich.
Wolverhampton Wanderers would have anticipated relegation in the Premier League this season, and those concerns have come true after four losses in their first six games.
The Old Gold stuttered to a 1-1 draw against Luton Town at Kenilworth Road on Saturday afternoon, albeit after spending the entire second half with ten men, Gary O’Neil would have considered the result as one point won rather than two dropped.
On Tuesday evening, the Old Gold can put their poor league form behind them and concentrate on their journey to face Championship high-flyers Ipswich Town in the Carabao Cup third round.
The Tractor Boys have made an impressive start to their second-tier campaign, winning seven of their first eight games, with their sole setback coming against Leeds United.
This competition may be a distraction, but it isn’t an easy one for Wolves, and they’ll have to be on the ball against a confident team that will be looking for an upset.
What’s the most recent Wolves team news?
With the opportunity to use his entire squad, O’Neil is anticipated to make multiple changes against Ipswich, at least one of which will be imposed.
Jean-Ricner Bellegarde, Wolves’ standout performer in their 3-1 loss to Liverpool, followed it up with a dreadful performance against Luton, when the midfielder was sent off for an unjustifiable challenge on defender Tom Lockyer.
On a much brighter note, midfielder Joe Hodge, who caught the eye in their 5-0 thrashing of Blackpool in the previous round, is working his way back from a muscular problem – which he sustained in the last round – and has a slim chance of returning for this tie.
Elsewhere, Matt Doherty, Boubacar Traore, Toti Gomes, Fabio Silva and Sasa Kalajdzic should all get their chances to impress O’Neil from the off, as could on-loan Manchester City midfielder Tommy Doyle, who has featured twice off the bench in the Premier League so far.
Should Tommy Doyle start vs Ipswich?
After joining on loan with an option to buy for £4.3m, Doyle’s opportunities in the Wolves team have been limited thus far, however, with a suspension to Bellegarde and Mario Lemina likely to be rested, the Englishman could get his chance to shine.
The 21-year-old starred in the Sheffield United side that was promoted to the Premier League last season, scoring four goals and registering seven assists, as he impressed at Bramall Lane in a Paul Heckingbottom system that allowed his technical attributes to flourish, operating in a dynamic midfield three with James McAtee and Sander Berge.
Possessing the technique and superb passing range to dictate the tempo of matches – as taught at Man City – the midfield metronome looked a cut above at Championship level when compared to his positional peers, ranking in the top 5% for expected assists, top 12% for shot creating actions, top 13% for passes into the final third and top 15% for progressive passes, as per FBref.
At times this campaign, Wolves have struggled in the absence of the technically astute Ruben Neves and although Doyle is unable to replicate the impact of the Portuguese, he can offer O’Neil a calmness on the ball in midfield and that could be key tonight with Ipswich likely to start fast out of the blocks.
The 5 foot 8 “set-piece specialist” – as lauded by England under-21 teammate Charlie Cresswell – can provide Wolves with quality from dead-ball situations too, which is also something they’ve missed in the absence of Neves.
Doyle was one of the stand-out players in the Championship last term and earned his move to a Premier League side on the back of his consistent displays. Now, the stage is set for him to show O’Neil what he can offer the Old Gold in future matches.
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