Gary O'Neil believes one victory is all it will take to provide lift-off for Wolves' season, as the Premier League's bottom side prepare to visit Brentford on Saturday. (More Football News)
W🏅olves have taken just one point from their first six matches of the season, having last failed to൩ win any of their first seven games of a top-flight campaign when they finished bottom in 2003-04.
They fell to a 2-1 defeat to leade෴rs Liverpool at Molineux last week and have also faced Arsenal, Chelsea, Newcastle United and Aston Villa in a daunti💝ng start to 2024-25.
O'Neil believeꦜs their performances have warranted better results and insists his team retain the backing of supporters, saying: "The lads always show that they're not a group that can't bounce back.
"When we lost to Arsenal, we went full throttle against Chelseaꦦ. Then we went full throttle against Newcastle and we suffered a late defeat. We go to Aston Villa, and we go again.
"We'ꦕre ready to go again and that will always be the case. Everyone in this football club is doing absolutely everything they can, myself included. I'm really disappointed for the lads because they deserve something to show for their efforts at this moment.
"We just need to find a way to get that first win on the board, then we'll be able to pu🐓sh off."
Brentford, meanwhile, sit 1ജ2th i𒁃n the table with seven points, after drawing 1-1 with West Ham last time out.
Goﷺalkeeper Mark Flekken has made a solid start to 2024-25 after initially struggling to adapt to the Premier League when first joining the Bees la🌱st year.
Speaking to the club's ♌official website about his upturn, the former Freiburg man said it was his goal to become a player coach Thomas Frank could always depend 𓃲on.
"I want to p🅠ut in the same performances that I did during the second half of l𝓀ast season, but over the full year," Flekken said.
"I'm not the pe༺rson that seeks out to be decisive in a game; if the boys keep everything away from♋ me, that's better. I want to save those one, two, three shots on target where the team needs me. That is my goal, to be that person they can rely on."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Brentford – Bryan Mbeumo
Mbeumo's goal against West Ham last time out was his 48th Premier League goal involvement (27 goals, 21 assists), the 𒁃outright most of any Brentford player.
The Cameroonian is looking to score in three consecutive league games forꦇ the first time since December 2019 (a run of four in the Championsh🌠ip).
Wolves – Matheus Cunha
So much of Wolves' attacking play goes through Cunha, and the Brazilian will have ✃a pivo💖tal role to play if they are to get up and running here.
He has had more shots (16), created more chances (nine), had more touches in the opposition box (25) and played more passes into the box (30) than any other Wolves player in the Pr𝓰emier League this season.
MATCH PREDICTION – BRENTFORD WIN
Brentford൩ won 2-0 at Wolves in February, with the Bees las👍t winning consecutive league games against them in the 2015-16 Championship campaign.
But Wolves have a strong🐼 record in West London, going unbeaten through their last f🅷ive away league games against Brentford (three wins, two draws), winning two of their three visits in the Premier League including a 4-1 triumph last December.
O'Neil's men have also won three of their last four Premier League away games a𒐪gainst London sides, as many as they had in their previous 21 such visits (four draws, 14 losses), though they did lose on their only visit to the capital so far this season (0-2 at Arsenal).
Wolves have, however, conceded 16 goals from just 9.8 expected goals against (xGA) in the Premier League this season, the worst such difference so far this term (-6.2). Brentford wi💫ll hope their porous showings continue on S🔴aturday.
The Bees should be wary if they do hit the front🎀 though, having dropped a league-high 38 Premier League points from winning positions since the start of last season, including eight already in 2024-25.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Brentford – 47.4%
Wolves – 27.9%
Draw – 24.8%
