By The Newsroom
Published15th Apr 2026, 08:00 BST
None too therapeutic that extended break; disintegration at West Ham and surely an end to any notion of the ‘Great Escape’ nonsense which was a wildly unrealistic dream all along.
Despite a decent start to the game, the performance dipped alarmingly and the recent improvement certainly wasn’t sustained. Some dire individual errors contributed significantly to the final outcome but the long-term significance of the result counts for very little.
Sure, it would lift the spirits to finish this wretched season on a positive note but our focus now is quite simply on preparing ourselves to become competitive in the Championship.
Late last season, we defeated all three clubs destined for relegation; away at Southampton and at Ipswich by single goal margins, but we were the vastly superior team in both games.
At Molineux, Wolves dismantled Leicester and our fans took great delight in reminding their travelling supporters that they were going down, a fate that now awaits us.
Wolves should keep a wary eye on what’s occurred since at the King Power Stadium. Excellent facilities, solid infrastructure with a strong fan base, no doubt expecting a genuine tilt at a first time return to the Premier League.
Instead, wracked by PSR deductions, they are in dire straits staring at consecutive relegations seemingly lacking any sense of positive direction.
Wolves undoubtedly are in better shape, but no club knows more painfully the horrors of spiralling rapidly downwards than we do. Falling and rebuilding again can be fraught with danger.
In contrast, both Ipswich who occupy the second automatic promotion spot and Southampton, season transformed storming towards the play-offs with a semi-final in the FA Cup an added bonus, are positively shaping their destiny.
Wolves now face a similar challenge. Much optimistic talk is emanating from Molineux since Jeff Shi was replaced as executive chairman but there remains much to be put right on and off the field before next August.
For too long, the club has been introspective, palpably limiting its ambition, hoping to get by and merely survive in an elite environment not suited to expenditure cuts and opportunistic disposal of saleable assets.
This deterioration had to catch up eventually, and it has, big time.
Unlike Leicester, Wolves aren’t trapped in any PSR financial straightjacket, but to restore parity successfully, some proactive decision making is essential.
Ipswich and Southampton have stabilised and confidently reasserted themselves. Wolves need to follow suit – it won’t be easy.
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