Wolves fans will be feeling disappointed after suffering yet another loss in the Premier League, but midfielder Adam Wharton’s comments have offered a positive perspective.
For 60 minutes, it did look like Wolves could get something out of the match.
The Old Gold did not start well, and they could have conceded an early penalty after a controversial VAR call, but instead they got to the hour mark with the game at 0-0.
Rob Edwards’ side grew into the match, and when Daniel Munoz scored in the 63rd minute, it did go against the run of play.
But that is the difference between the two sides. Crystal Palace have more quality in their team, where they can turn it on in an instant, scoring a goal, and Wharton was one of those standouts.
The midfielder was asked about how it was to play against the new-look Wolves, and you can grab some optimism from his response.
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Adam Wharton found it tough to play against Wolves
It took a while for Crystal Palace to break down Wolves, but when they did, it was easy for them to score a second.
Midfielder Adam Wharton played a part in the opening goal, as it was his blocked shot that deflected into the path of Daniel Munoz, who rifled it into an empty net, with Johnstone stepping to the side to follow the direction of Wharton’s original effort.
The Eagles star was left impressed by Rob Edwards’ team, who he says were ‘tough to beat’.
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The compliment from Wharton will be a big positive to take out of the game. Often this season, Wolves have been the opposite.
They have found themselves down a goal early, or they have conceded upwards of three goals or more.
In fact, before Saturday’s kickoff, the Old Gold had conceded three or more in each of their last four.
Additionally, the context of the goals must be considered. The away side were quite lucky that the ball dropped to Munoz, where it would have been harder to miss, and the moment of magic of Yeremy Pino would prove difficult to save from most keepers.
It is only the first game for Edwards, and Wolves being better defensively is a good sign, but there is a big decision to make about one player for next week.
Wolves created more against Crystal Palace than they gave away
When it came to going forward, Wolves actually created more quality chances than the away side, and the issue was simply in converting them.
The Old Gold had three big chances created, and perhaps the biggest miss of the lot was Jhon Arias, who was left with an open goal.
However, the Colombian was unable to steer in David Moller Wolfe’s cross, and it continued his struggling start to Premier League life.
Signs are there that Wolves are a different team. They created more in this game than across any of Vitor Pereira’s Premier League matches this season.
And with Wharton crediting them defensively, it at least gives fans something to cling onto for this season’s hopes.
But those can be dashed quite quickly if relegation rivals continue to pull away.