Mateus Mane got some more minutes in Wolves’ defeat to Nottingham Forest and Rob Edwards’ next move with the youngster feels obvious.
On Wednesday night, Wolves were beaten 1-0 by Forest at Molineux – giving one of their worst displays of the season in the process.
Wolves were completely toothless, and barely threatened Forest in the game.
After yet another defeat, who was the most disappointing Wolves performer vs Nottingham Forest?
Forest themselves didn’t show a great deal in the final third, but still managed to be clinical in the right moment, with Igor Jesus scoring a header past a flapping Sam Johnstone.
The result and performance has left many Wolves fans hopeless. Wolves looked good at times against Aston Villa and many wanted to see the players build on that display.
But it never came, and the mood now could not be lower.
Positives from last night are certainly scarce. But Mateus Mane’s cameo was one.
- READ MORE: Four things we learned from Wolves’ loss vs Nottingham Forest, including the Tchatchoua problem
Mateus Mane deserves his first start for Wolves against Man United
It is difficult to recall a more uninspiring performance from Wolves, certainly in an attacking sense.
The only major chance they had last night was the one that Jhon Arias missed after a ball across the box from Jackson Tchatchoua.
Shay Given felt the miss from Arias was the difference between the two teams, with Jesus then scoring his own headed opportunity.
Jorgen Strand Larsen also struggled, and it really was an awful night for the forwards.
On 80 minutes, Edwards threw on Mateus Mane as part of a triple change – and the youngster completely showed up Arias, Strand Larsen and others.
He immediately threatened, and flashed one great ball across the box that was just out of Strand Larsen’s reach.
He also made a great carry on the right side, taking the ball up the pitch past a couple of players.
No one is suggesting that Mane is the answer to Wolves’ problems. He is a young player who has only just started playing in the first-team.
But it now feels that he deserves his first Premier League start for Wolves, given how poorly some of his more senior teammates have been in recent weeks.
Last night, Mane was so positive when he came on, even though he didn’t get much time to make an impact. It was refreshing to see that given the club’s dire position right now, and surely there’s an argument for him starting against Manchester United on Monday.
Mane knows what he has to do to become a Wolves regular
Lots of fans are now clamouring for Mane to start for Wolves.
Amid the terrible situation, supporters have always had a lot of time for the talented Mane, who started the season brilliantly with the U21s.
Obviously, he can’t save Wolves’ season. But it feels like he can bring a bit more of an edge to Wolves’ attack.
Check out our Wolves player ratings from the defeat to Nottingham Forest
Rob Edwards has told Mane he needs to believe in himself more, and if he does that then the manager may well look to get him starting more regularly.
Edwards said after last night’s game: “He’ll take a risk. I probably wanted him to shoot when he had that opportunity later on. He said he could have, so I said, ‘You’re on the pitch; you’ve got to believe in yourself’.”
Hopefully, Mane will have a productive week in training to boost his chances of starting against United.
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