Wolves forward Matheus Cunha has disagreed with one comment made by Gary O’Neil ahead of the six-pointer against Crystal Palace.
Cunha was Wolves’ hero once more last weekend, as his 93rd-minute equaliser helped salvage a vital point at Brighton.
The 25-year-old made it four goals in nine Premier League matches this term, although that return hasn’t been enough to drag his side up the table.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 19 |  WolvesWolves | 9 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 12 | 25 | -13 | 2 |
Currently sitting second bottom on just two points, the Wanderers are still searching for their first win this term and Gary O’Neil doesn’t think Wolves have entered must-win territory.
Speaking ahead of the clash against Crystal Palace at Molineux, O’Neil said: “I know there will be a lot made of the next games, but they’re not must-wins.”
It’s a bold statement that few will agree with after not winning a league game in six months, including his talisman Cunha.
Matheus Cunha labels Crystal Palace clash as ‘crucial’
While O’Neil’s assessment of the upcoming fixtures renders them not ‘must-wins’, they most certainly are, and the Wanderers can ill-afford to drop more points this weekend.
It’s unsettling that the manager is speaking about their biggest game of the season in such a manner, as failure to win all three points could see him lose his job.
Luckily, the players aren’t carrying the same mentality into this relegation six-pointer, with Cunha labelling the duel against Palace as ‘crucial’ in their season.
Speaking to Wolves official website, Cunha said: “For me, this is the most crucial point in the season. Of course, Crystal Palace is also a very good team, but they’ve started the season like us, and we need to be very careful, because they come here with a little bit more power because they won the last game, a very important game also against Tottenham.
“But for both teams, it will be very important, and hopefully it will be the key to changing every single thing, because the games that are coming are more face-to-face, and then I hope we have more celebrations.”
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Crystal Palace suffer double injury blow ahead of Wolves
Wolves are currently four points behind Palace, who currently occupy 17th position, so a victory on Saturday would give the hosts renewed confidence heading into the Southampton clash.
The Eagles are fresh from securing their first win of the season, beating Tottenham 1-0, with Eberechi Eze assisting Jean-Philippe Mateta’s winner.
However, during Palace’s Carabao Cup win over Aston Villa, Eze and midfielder Adam Wharton were forced to withdraw in the first half.
Eze and Wharton have now been ruled out of the clash against Wolves, with Oliver Glasner confirming the injury blow during his pre-match press conference.
Wharton is an outstanding midfield talent and a full England international while Eze is arguably Palace’s most important player.
So, the fact they’re injured for the next couple of weeks is devastating for Glasner but perhaps a relief for Wolves, who will fancy their chances of finally winning in a game.