On Tuesday, Gary O’Neil may have been delivering a subtle message to Wolves’ £80,000-a-week star.
Wolves were knocked out of the Carabao Cup on Tuesday night, losing 3-2 to Ipswich Town of the Championship.
Wanderers surrendered at Portman Road after going up 2-0 in the first 15 minutes.
Hwang Hee-chan maintained his excellent form by scoring a spectacular goal with his left foot.
Toti Gomes extended the lead after pouncing on a loose ball in the corner.
But Ipswich rallied, with Jack Taylor scoring shortly before the hour mark.
Many Wolves fans are displeased with the outcome. This was a chance for Wolves to win again before a major game against Manchester City in the Premier League.
To throw it away as they do was very concerning to see.
O’Neil made some interesting calls in the game – and there was one in particular that felt quite significant…
Gary O’Neil putting Nathan Fraser on before Fabio Silva was very interesting
O’Neil started Sasa Kalajdzic against the Tractor Boys.
The Austrian did assist Hwang’s goal, but didn’t offer a great deal as the lone striker.
He was replaced on the hour mark after Ipswich had scored their third goal, and it was interesting to see young Nathan Fraser replacing him.
Fraser, 18, is the fourth-choice striker at Wolves, after the club failed to bring in Che Adams or Boulaye Dia on deadline day.
It was interesting that O’Neil did not turn to Fabio Silva first, with the Portuguese coming on at 75 minutes with Matheus Cunha.
Many expected Silva to actually start against Ipswich given that he scored in the previous round against Blackpool.
But it was Fraser who got the nod first.
Do you have any work for Silva?
Silva played no minutes against Luton Town last weekend.
As a result, he would have been incredibly fresh.
The fact that O’Neil turned to Fraser before him suggests that the manager was conveying a message to the player.
Fraser also scored in the previous round against Blackpool.
But he’s only 18 years old, while Silva is 21 years old.
Did O’Neil truly believe Fraser was more likely to score for Wolves than Silva?
Or was O’Neil implying to Silva, who earns £80,000 per week, that he needs to work a little more right now?
It will be intriguing to see how involved the Portuguese is against Manchester City this weekend.
