"Saturday's defeat at home to Brentford means Wolves have taken just two points for 17 games. No side in the entire history of English league football, in any division, has ever made a worse start than that. To reach 11 points, the record low for a Premier League season set by Derby County in 2007-08, would require a significant improvement. How can this have happened?"
"Wolves finished 16th last season, recovering after a dismal start. When Vitor Pereira took over on 19 December last year, they were second bottom on nine points from 16 games. They picked up 23 points from the final 22 games of the season and effectively ended any prospect of relegation with a run of six successive victories in the spring. How can a team go from averaging near enough a point a game to a tenth of that?"
"There were departures in the summer, with Matheus Cunha joining Manchester United, Rayan Ait-Nouri going to Manchester City, Fabio Silva sold to Borussia Dortmund, Goncalo Guedes gone to Real Sociedad and Pablo Sarabia and Nelson Semedo 115 league starts between them last season leaving on frees. But that in itself shouldn't have been enough to send Wolves into freefall. Last summer, though, was not a one-off. Wolves have been selling off talent and not really replacing it for a couple of years now."
Wolves have taken just two points from 17 games, the worst start in English league football history across all divisions. Reaching Derby County's low of 11 points would demand a dramatic turnaround. The club recovered from a poor start last season under Vitor Pereira, earning 23 points from the final 22 matches and a six-game winning run that secured survival. A sustained pattern of selling key players over multiple summers has diminished squad strength and created a perception of decline. Player departures, squad erosion and low morale have combined to produce an extraordinary drop-off and potential midseason exits.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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