A disappointing match that ended in a disappointing result as Saints went out of the League cup with barely a whimper.

This was a game that Saints seemed determined to give away, although they dominated the first half and created a few chances they were poor at the back and Wolves squadered two good opportunities that they really should have done better at.

The first goal was an appalling piece of marking from Jack Stephens who let Danny Batth rise above him unchallenged for a free header that was so soft you wondered why Jeremy Pied on the line didn't clear it, but you sensed it was going to be that sort of night., it wasn't the first gifted chance of the night, only the first punished.

When Wolves sealed it late on, on the break with Saints defence all at sea that just about capped an evening that had few plus points about it.

In fact just about the only good thing you can take from it is that Mauricio Pellegrino will have had a few questions answered about some of his squad members.

He played a system that saw a back three of Stephens on the right, Bednarek in the middle and Yoshida on the left, none of them looked comfortable, Sam McQueen and Jeremy Pied to be blunt are not great full backs, but they are better there than in the wing back role they were employed in, they rarely got any service into Charlie Austin who was often isolated up front.

The central four of Tadic, Boufal Romeu and Ward Prowse huffed and puffed but rarely looked like creating, Boufal looked good for a period in the first half when he got the ball, but too often he looked disinterested .

The system wasn't working as it didn't have the quality of players to implement it, by the time changes were made it was too late Wolves had dug in and the pattern of the game had been set.

This was a disappointing night but it isn't the first time we have gone out in this competition to lower rated opposition and it won't be the last, it is just such a shame that we wont emulate last seasons progress in it.

But to be realistic this starting line up wont look anyting like the one that faces Huddersfield in terms of shape or personel, Mauricio Pellegrino trusted his squad to be able to adapt to a different formation and they let him down, he now knows what certain players can and cannot do and that will be an advantage going forward.

So a big big disappointment but only in the short term, it is perhaps a wake up call for the team that we are weak in certain areas, yous suspect that Mauricio Pellegrino won't make the same mistake again.

Photo: Action Images

skiptonsaint added 11:14 - Aug 24 Bit worried that quite a few of our younger players ie boufal, JWP, Pierre , McQueen etc seem to be going backwards ...big year ahead for them.
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patred added 11:19 - Aug 24 No matter how poor the players were, the manager's performance was even poorer. He put a team out there under prepared, using a system that was never going to get us further in this competition. The players were all at sea from the start. Not so much the players letting him down...he let them down. He compounded this by leaving it too late in the game to change things, Wolves already got over any fear they had visiting a higher rated team with a weakened side. Their backs were up, and once they scored they were never going to lose. No pulling punches this was a poor team we put out by a poor manager. Pelligrini should be embarrassed by his performance, he will have lost some respect in the eyes of some of his players, and most fans are questioning whether he is indeed an upgrade on the previous manager. He will now have to work even harder to recover any respect he had prior to this 'experiment'.

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Sanguin added 11:19 - Aug 24 I think quality wing backs are key if you’re going to play 3 at the back. If Soares and Bertrand had been playing then we would definitely have seen more service. I can understand that Pellegrino is still learning about his squad, but it strikes me as really arrogant to play an untested formation against weaker opposition and assume we would be successful. I wonder whether having six central defenders at the club meant that Pellegrino was trying to fit the formation to accommodate our squad?

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saintpp added 11:33 - Aug 24 If The so called clueless clown Puel got to the final not conceding a goal against all pl teams what does that make MP with his bizarre formation and changes versus wolves reserves? Better get it right saturday or huddersfield will thump us.
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LondonSaint added 11:38 - Aug 24 I appreciate you don't think Stephens is good enough but singling out his "appalling" marking for the first goal whilst at the same time choosing a photo that shows it was a foul is a bit silly.
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LordDZLucan added 11:57 - Aug 24 That was an absolute disaster and possibly the most disappointing performance and result I’ve seen at St. Marys in the last 5 years. A Saints team with 5 players retained from the weekend lost to a Wolves side with zero players retained from the weekend! There was no invention in the side and we never looked like scoring. We played a different formation which was justified after the game by Pellegrino on the grounds that he wanted to counter the Wolves setup of 5 at the back. Excuse me? We are the Premier League side playing at home against a Championship side and we base our formation on the opposition? I don’t think so. We should play the way that suits us best….end of. Let them worry about us. Pellegrino is over complicating matters and I know it’s early days but I’m seriously worried we’ve got the wrong man. It could be a long season.

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ExiledSupporter added 11:58 - Aug 24 Well Nick, I hope you feel sufficiently remorseful to recognise that your ill-judged enthusiasm for MP was seriously misjudged in your comments here only a couple of days ago. Like you I am, of course, hopeful that he will be a better than good replacement for CP, but to speak about him in the laudatory term you used after the W Ham game was ludicrous. After all we had failed to score against arguably the weakest team in the Prem on the first weekend and scraped through to a little luckily beat the Hammers in our second match...and have now put in a poor shift against Wolves in one of the only two competitions where we are ever going to make our mark in almost any season. So unlike your previous comments I am not going to write MP off as yet by any means, but yesterday's selection tactics and performance were as bad as any of Puel's mistakes, perhaps bar the humiliation by Arsenal in the Cup. But bear in mind this sort of experimentation should be tested extensively in training sessions (I think three at the back might work for us under certain circumstances eg with VVD, Hoedt and ANO playing at the back), not given a first run out in a proper match against a resurgent side who had nothing to lose and much to win, while we had much to learn and apparently little motivation. So let's have less of the whingeing about CP and more measured criticism of MP, when it is due, and after we have more evidence to base our views o.

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redandwhitedee added 12:09 - Aug 24 No point in me adding how terrible this was, but I really cant understand why McArthy was not given a run out in this game. Surely if Forster gets another injury, we will need someone to step in who has some recent game time. Would be good to have some pressure on Forster in general.
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davepid added 12:09 - Aug 24 .Lordlucan. Worse than Arsenal 5-0?
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LordDZLucan added 12:15 - Aug 24 Davepid - I did think about whether the 5-0 Arsenal defeat was more disappointing than last night but I decided that my main emotion back then was annoyance that I'd been charged good money to watch the reserves take on a superior Arsenal team rather than disappointment in the performance.
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Santos added 12:23 - Aug 24 As I have admitted before I was a fence sitter with Mr Puel, and find myself on it again now but starting to wobble. The first 3 games have passed and unfortunately I do not see any improvement if anything the team seems less cohesive than last. With Puel there was at least a system that the players carried out and knew what they were doing. ok maybe not exciting football and form did fall off at the end, but I find myself wondering if Puel at least knew our limitations. Ok so all the players are telling us what a breath of fresh air this guy is! Maybe! but tactically I do not see a lot going on. Substitutions where needed in both games last night and Wham before goals where scored and nothing happened until we conceded. not sure if he is now learning and seeing what he has or out of his depth so on the fence I am again for a few more games but wobbling hoping a decent manager emerges at some point.

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helpineedsomebody added 12:33 - Aug 24 once the owner & his management team get to work at st marys there will be a lot of people trying to reach the top of the greasy pole . i fear for kruger/reed & mp they are all accountable now
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bstokesaint added 12:34 - Aug 24 What a disappointing, and embarrassing exit. Like others on here have stated we will see in time if MP is an upgrade on CP, but getting to the final without conceding isn't a fluke. Sometimes you have to give credit where it's due. MP had virtually a full strength squad to choose from and so going down to Championship opposition at home is unacceptable. We need to put things right at the weekend. Huddersfield are flying right now and if I'm honest I can't see much past a home victory. If we're not up for a fight we're going to come home with nothing. They'll be as tricky as Man U or Chelsea right now. Last night was another warning that we're well off the pace.

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SanMarco added 12:44 - Aug 24 Cant see the "Strength in Depthers" dancing on the rooftops after this - unless they are Wolves fans of course. It is far too early to cast panic judgements on MP. Saturday will be a good test.
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Consigliere added 12:59 - Aug 24 What a pleasure to see a team with determined strikers, a coherent midfield and a staunch defence. But enough about Wolves, what of Saints? As others have said, a wrong system with an indifferent performance in every part of the field with the possible exception of Yoshida who had a reasonable game. Not for the first time, Austin taken off too late (he was actually lucky to remain on the field after the awful tackle on the goalkeeper) and Long brought on too late. OK, it was an experiment but the manager will know that it didn't work so lesson learned please and don't repeat!

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SaintBrock added 13:46 - Aug 24 When a manager makes a point beforehand of saying that he is not going to be treating this match as a training exercise,,, you know what folks, that is exactly what he is going to do! As we saw last night, he deployed a 3-4-2-1 (at least that's what it seems to me to have been at the start?) experimentally, with what aim in mind I know not. Evidently Pellegrini wasn't in the least bit interested in winning the match on the night which can only imply that Hong Kong have decreed that his only goal for this season is the Europa League. It's all about money now to pay back the new owners debt rather than local glory of winning a tin pot!

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saintmark1976 added 13:49 - Aug 24 Don't worry. According to the Echo it appears that all we need do is follow the advice of Mr Tadic and "forget about it". Somewhat easier to do if your getting paid £50000 a week I suspect.
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DellHero added 13:52 - Aug 24 "he now knows what certain players can and cannot do" Yup. A lot of them can't play football.
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brownk added 13:55 - Aug 24 Crikey ........ why is everyone so quick to criticise. Give the man a chance! The trouble is everyone thinks they are an expert and could do a better job with no inside knowledge of the bigger picture. I am sure he had good reason to change the formation. He is still finding his way with a new squad of players and he needs to explore what the players are capable of. It seems to me that there are some fans relishing a bad performance to then heap critism on the owners, LR, MP or whichever player is not flavour of the month. I for one think we have a fantastically run club, with ambition, a good manger & great fans. Why don't we focus all our attentions on supporting the team and getting behind the manager. So many fans from other clubs would love to have the club we have! Less negativity wouldn't go amiss!

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LordDZLucan added 14:00 - Aug 24 Sorry brownk but every player in the Wolverhampton Wanderers team last night was a reserve bar none. It would have been bad enough if it had have been their first team!
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SaintBrock added 14:01 - Aug 24 NICK, PLEASE NOTE. Captain Yoshida played an absolute blinder last night, leading as a captain should lead full blooded commitment, battling the odds, here, there and everywhere trying to engender a bit of enthusiasm and fight from his men. The man was outstanding. I've said it before and I'll say it again. far from moving him on in the way you have campaigned for for years we should give him a new contract and after that keep him here on the coaching staff with the Academy. Spirit & leadership such as his is a rare commodity not to be discarded lightly. Even during the match last night he was trying to coach Stephens & Bednerek on positioning and finesse. Fascinating to watch when little else was on display to entertain.

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LordDZLucan added 14:05 - Aug 24 I couldn't agree more, SaintBrock. He's been our stand out player for some time now.
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SaintBrock added 14:12 - Aug 24 brownk, people say it as they see it and what they saw last night was the stuff of nightmares. Quite rightly the manager should carry the can for that shambles. The old adage holds sway "You are only a good as your last performance!" Of course Pellegrino must be given a chance, nobody is calling for his head except a few trigger-happy malcontents over on "the other" place. This has noting to do with the club or its record over recent years.

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LordDZLucan added 15:20 - Aug 24 At last some good news. Yoshi just signed a new contract!
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brownk added 16:28 - Aug 24 Some many judgement calls are being made over one bad performance and that can't be right! We all have off days in whatever we do and we need to make a considered opinion over time. It is a sad reflection that it is now human nature to be quick to criticise & slow to praise. The negativity of us fans can have a massive impact on the team. There are so many good things about SFC so let's make sure we celebrate those as quickly as we do the bad!

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