Wolves’ dreadful start to the season did not improve on match day six as Gary O’Neil’s side lost to Liverpool.
It’s been a brutal start to the 2024/25 calendar for the Old Gold, who have already had to play five of last season’s top seven in the Premier League.
The opposition has been incredibly challenging, which has not been helped by Wolves’ inability to perform for a complete 90 minutes.
As a result, the O’Neil’s side sit bottom of the table with just one point on the board from a possible 18.
Sam Johnstone told to improve fast after Liverpool defeat
Wolves find themselves in a difficult situation, with the fixture list not set to get any less daunting over the month ahead.
In October, O’Neil’s side will face Brentford and Brighton away from home, as well as welcoming champions Manchester City in between.
While the squad as a collective needs to reflect on how games are being lost in the second half, one player has been singled out when it comes to the need to up his game.
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Speaking in reaction to Wolves’ defeat to Liverpool on match day six, journalists Liam Keen and Nathan Judah assessed the overall performance of Sam Johnstone.
“He looked rattled by the crowd to me, he allowed the atmosphere to get on top of him,” Keen said on The Keen & Judah Show.
“You have to deal with that, it seemed to me that he just let people get into his head. He got rattled by the nervousness amongst the supporters, he started to make mistakes with the ball at his feet and because of that, it was a pretty unconvincing performance.”
While some will argue that Johnstone’s impressive save was a standout from a Wolves point of view in the fixture, the consensus was that the Englishman was not up to scratch against the Reds.
“This is an England international, the crowd shouldn’t be getting to him in these situations,” Judah responded to Keen when discussing Johnstone.
“If Jose Sa was in goal, I don’t think we would’ve seen much of a difference. Hopefully he can improve and he’s going to have to improve very quickly.”
Wolves made a bold decision to sign Johnstone
While Johnstone has shown glimpses of why he is an England international, the Wolves goalkeeper’s start to life in the Midlands has not gone as smoothly as hoped.
It was a surprise for the Old Gold to recruit the former Crystal Palace number two, considering that Jose Sa remained at the club after the summer transfer window.
Having now exiled Sa to the bench, O’Neil will be watching Johnstone’s actions following the Liverpool defeat very closely, with concerns raised about his display being very valid.
Added to the issues that surround Wolves at present, the last thing the manager needs is a sense of anxiety between the sticks, as Johnstone’s performance against Arne Slot’s side was incredibly nervy.
Like every player in the squad, there’s plenty of time for the goalkeeper to right his wrongs, with no time like the present when it comes to tightening up at Molineux.