Is There Cause for Optimism at Wolves? | OneFootball

Even the most die-hard of Wolves supporters have had their loyalty severely tested this season. 

The Roughest of Starts

It took until January 3 for the bottom side to win their first Premier League game of the season, having lost 16 of their first 18 games in the competition. But that 3-0 win over fellow strugglers West Ham has at least given the Molineux faithful something to cheer. It also fuels hope that they can, at a minimum, avoid being the Premier League’s worst ever side. 

That record is held by Derby County, who picked up a measly 11 points in the 2007/08 campaign. Wolves, currently on seven points, have given their fans enough confidence to think they can at least pick up five more points between now and the end of the campaign to avoid that unwanted honor. 

But does their recent form suggest a late bid to get out of the relegation spots could even be on the cards? 

Logic would suggest not. They are still 14 points behind 17th placed Nottingham Forest with 17 games left to go of the campaign and it would take a remarkable run between now and then to lift themselves out of their current predicament. 

But having been beaten week after week for such a long time, they are now positioned to at least make somewhat of a fight of it. That win over the Hammers was preceded and succeeded by 1-1 draws, away at Manchester United and then away at Everton – two tough places to go. 

Very few folks expected a four-game unbeaten run. Source: Sofascore

They also thrashed Shrewsbury Town 6-1 in the FA Cup, though their most recent opponents have even more cause than Wolves fans to be disillusioned with their team, with Salop sitting 22nd in League Two.  

A New Talisman

But few Wolves fans would have expected a four-match unbeaten run at any point of the season, and they have youngster Mateus Mané’s emergence to thank for that.  The 18-year-old, signed from Rochdale in 2024, has shown a lot of the other, more established players in the squad how it should be done, scoring in the draw with Everton and win over West Ham. 

While this season has been a disaster, he has at least given fans optimism that the future can be a brighter one, and that they can avoid the despair of 2025 in 2026. 

They will likely need Mané to deliver again if they are to continue their unbeaten streak against an improved Newcastle side, however. 

A Steady Newcastle

The Magpies were beaten 2-0 by Manchester City in the Carabao Cup semi-final first leg in midweek, but can perhaps count themselves unlucky to be on the end of a defeat of that margin given the chances they created. 

It was only a few weeks ago that Eddie Howe’s position as Newcastle boss was being seriously debated among fans, but he has significantly quietened that noise with a three-match winning run in the Premier League with victories over Burnley, Crystal Palace and Leeds, lifting them to sixth in the table. 

And while the standings would suggest this should be none other than a comfortable Newcastle win, Wolves’ renewed confidence means this is nowhere near as straightforward as that.