In a 3-0 defeat to West Ham United, Wolves faced criticism for a questionable moment just before half-time, as observed by Roy Keane and Daniel Sturridge.
This marks Wolves’ fourth consecutive away defeat in the Premier League, and the performance at the London Stadium was notably subpar. The defensive struggles, particularly against Mohammed Kudus and Lucas Paqueta in the first half, left much to be desired.
Gary O’Neil, Wolves’ manager, is left with considerations ahead of the next game against Chelsea on Christmas Eve, possibly reflecting on concerns arising from the incident just before half-time in the West Ham match.
Just before half-time, there was a forceful collision between Vladimir Coufal and Jean-Ricner Bellegarde, with Coufal appearing to lead with his elbow, striking Bellegarde’s face after the ball was gone.
Despite the incident going unpunished, pundits Roy Keane and Daniel Sturridge expressed shock at halftime. Coufal continued with another robust challenge later in the game, this time with his shoulder, resulting in Bellegarde needing treatment and earning Coufal a booking.
The match witnessed contentious moments, leaving pundits and observers questioning the lack of consequences for the earlier incident.
“I don’t know if this should be happening on a football pitch. This is WWE stuff. This is rugby stuff. It’s an elbow the jaw.
“The way I look at it, lucky boy. We’ve seen players getting red for that. There’s no need for it,” the pundits said on Sky Sports.
Referees are supposed to protect players from brutal challenges like that, but the ref in the West Ham vs Wolves game failed considerably at that.