Points, Pubs And Pereira - Why A Perfect Match At Wolves Turned Sour

No pints and conscionable 2 points. It was inevitable Wolves called clip astatine nan barroom for Vitor Pereira.

The 57-year-old, who enjoyed going to nan pub to observe victories pinch Wolves fans past season, leaves aft conscionable 11 months astatine Molineux.

Saturday's 3-0 conclusion by Fulham - their eighth successful 10 games - was a consequence and capacity which gets managers nan sack and teams relegated.

A nonaccomplishment to a relegation rival, a reddish paper and an ain extremity ticked each nan boxes of a squad that is sitting bottommost of nan Premier League and successful a vulnerable spiral.

Wolves did not want to make a change, and moreover starring into nan play nan club's level was still backing Pereira, but that changed aft a disastrous day successful westbound London.

Stability and consistency was sought but nan axe fell connected Sunday greeting pinch nan nine 8 points from information and now looking for a 5th imperishable head successful 4 years.

Pereira only signed a new three-year deal 45 days agone aft guiding Wolves to information past season.

He replaced Gary O'Neil past December - O'Neil having presided complete different 10-game winless commencement - and oversaw a six-match winning streak betwixt March and April. It was nan club's champion top-flight tally since 1970.

It looked for illustration a cleanable lucifer - Pereira nominated for Premier League head of nan twelvemonth - but cracks started to look successful nan summer, which grew to a constituent wherever Pereira now regrets not stepping distant from Molineux astatine nan commencement of nan season.

The erstwhile Porto manager, who won nan Portuguese title twice, wanted to proceed past season's occurrence aft finishing 17 points supra nan relegation area successful 16th.

The tie to do that was excessively big, yet he was unhappy pinch nan readying complete transfers and Wolves signed 5 elder players, spending astir £100m, but nary had Premier League acquisition and Pereira was disappointed not to onshore first-choice targets.

He yet sanctioned those who did get though, including striker Tolu Arokodare, and they were mostly his picks, including driving nan signing of winger Jhon Arias.

They mislaid important apical formation know-how successful nan summertime erstwhile skipper Nelson Semedo near connected a free and Matheus Cunha and Rayan Ait-Nouri joined Manchester United and Manchester City respectively, meaning Wolves brought successful astir £120m, including different departures.

Cunha's £62.5m transportation was a nine record, aft United triggered his merchandise clause, but Wolves person been incapable to switch his 15 goals and all-round talent.

Wolves scored 63 goals past play but nan players who scored 32 of them are nary longer astatine nan club.

The nine is looking to alteration strategy and will target much homegrown players successful nan future, to thief their quota, and consciousness they are astatine nan commencement of a caller cycle, alert of nan risks it brings.

There is simply a semipermanent position astatine Molineux that Wolves tin win and moreover if they are relegated it tin beryllium handled, pinch owners Fosun not looking to waste nan club, instead being unfastened to number finance into Fosun Sports Group.

But possibly nan semipermanent readying has seen them distracted from nan short word and has near nan nine facing different conflict against relegation, 1 which looks terminal this time.

Players person go mentally drained aft conceding precocious goals which denied them wins complete Tottenham and Brighton.

Last week's precocious 3-2 conclusion by Burnley, successful which fans turned connected Pereira for nan first time, displayed Wolves losing to a squad that appeared to beryllium playing for a constituent pinch 15 minutes left.

Those results were fatal for nan assurance of nan broadside and nan Clarets' triumph astatine Molineux meant Pereira had mislaid to each of nan promoted sides this season.

The truth nan players were incapable to respond nether Pereira is believed to beryllium 1 of nan factors down nan determination to sack him, on pinch nan evident rumor of mediocre results.

At Craven Cottage connected Saturday nan show of Joao Gomes casually stepping nan shot backmost into his ain half precocious connected aliases Ki-Jana Hoever booting nan shot crossed nan transportation and into touch pointed to nan players' mindset.

When asked by BBC Sport aft conclusion connected Saturday really Wolves could beryllium nan only squad successful Premier League history to past aft 2 points from 10 games Pereira was incapable to supply a convincing answer.

"I don't person nan reply but I tin reply by saying past season, do you deliberation for a nine for illustration Wolves, it was imaginable to triumph six games successful a row?" he said.

"It's very difficult, moreover for nan large teams. It's difficult to triumph six games successful a row. This is my answer."

It was a squad which needed to get a consequence aft nan omission of Andre and Joao Gomes successful midfield and Pereira had made nan astir changes to his starting line-up [31] successful nan Premier League this season.

Pereira reasoned nan different building and unit connected Saturday was because they needed to beryllium much defensively coagulated but Wolves conceded aft conscionable 9 minutes, Ryan Sessegnon capitalising connected Santi Bueno's error.

He is an honorable man and was good liked by unit astatine nan Compton training base. He was personification who took clip to get to cognize nan fans and nan area, coining nan building 'first nan points, past nan pints', and nan nine is improbable to person that again.

It was genuinely sad to spot him struggling for answers astatine Fulham but he is knowledgeable capable to person known what was apt to come.

After Stamford's 3-1 complete Stourbridge successful nan Southern League Premier Central connected Saturday, Wolves are nan only broadside successful nan apical 7 tiers without a convention triumph this season.

Results dictate, contempt executive president Jeff Shi's willingness to beryllium loyal, and they are now trim adrift astatine nan ft of nan array pinch small to propose location would beryllium a melodramatic upturn successful form.

A travel to Chelsea is adjacent connected Saturday pinch Wolves looking for a swift appointment, though Under-21 caput coach James Collins and Richard Walker, who leads nan Under-18s, being successful caretaker complaint has not been ruled out.

The erstwhile Olympiacos and Fenerbache head labelled nan Fulham conclusion nan worst capacity nether him and location was a debrief planned connected Monday for some nan caput coach and players to aerial their feelings.

Pereira wanted to understand nan quality of nan performance, but he will not get nan chance aft his past orders connected Sunday morning.