Gary O’Neil was left with mixed feelings despite Wolves claiming a home win over Sheffield United, with the head coach disappointed with a second half performance which he admitted was full of errors.
With three points against the Blades, Wolves moved up to eighth position in the Premier League table, after Pablo Sarabia’s first half header secured the victory, but O’Neil understands there is plenty of work still to be done to ensure the second half display is no repeated.
On three important points
“First half was pretty good, but the second half, we lost our way. It was very similar to the away game at Sheffield United how we lost our way. It wasn’t like us at all and I really didn’t like the second half, so there’s lots for me to make sure we get better from today.
“The fans were excellent and you could see that even when it was tough for us against a team who are struggling in the league, and you see the fans were disappointed with that, but they stuck with the players, they stuck with us and helped us get over the line, and they were a big part of us getting it done today.
“There was no champagne football and nothing to put in the best practice folder, but it’s a win in the Premier League and it moves us up to eighth. Three points in the Premier League is always tough, so the boys did well to put another three on the board.”
On an under-par second half display
“It will be a long explanation [why the performance levels dropped off], but there were loads of errors – just really bad at finding solutions and technical errors.
“Losing the ball under their foot and then misplacing passes, so it made a bit of an uneasy atmosphere and we struggled to know what to do with the ball when they gave us time on it, so there are lots of stuff I need to fix, a lot of that second half is partly my fault, so we need to make sure we fix that and get to work on it.”
On being able to see out the game
“I was pleased, because Sheffield United are a direct team, they’re looking for a long throw all the time, they’re a threat from corners, but the way the lads stood up to that stuff was excellent and the way they kept going, even when we made mistakes and turned the ball over, there was no disappointment but a team who were desperate the make up for it and desperate to defend the goal.
“There are loads of ways you need to win Premier League games and today we had to dig in, we had to scrap and we were well below our best, but we managed to get three points which are very important for us.”
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On Sarabia’s decisive goal
“I thought he was excellent today. His movement, the way he arrived in the box – you wouldn’t believe how much we practice that goal. Sometimes it’s Pablo delivering and other boys arriving, and this time it’s Rayan inside delivering in the half space and Pablo did really well to arrive in the right space. It was an excellent goal. A fantastic header.
“We were in a really good moment in the first half where we were finding really good solutions and causing Sheffield United problems, creating loads of chances, so it was a great goal, a lovely header, a great delivery from Rayan as well with his right foot, so we’re pleased with the first half, but hugely disappointed with the second, but it’s another win, we’re in a good spot and we need to keep going.”
On moving up to eighth
“That second half performance gives me a real taste on how you can bump back down to earth very quickly, and how easy it would have been to not win that game with the way the second half went.
“I’m very conscious of it and I understand the second half was not good enough, regardless of the fact that we’ve just won and gone eighth in the Premier League with it, but we need to keep working on being better than that because that second half was not where we need to be, and we need to work really hard on improving.”
