Wes Hoolahan returned to the side in Norwich’s 2-1 victory over Wolves.
Norwich boss Alex Neil has explained why he brought Wes Hoolahan back into the team for the trip to Wolves, speaking to pinkun.com, having dropped the Irishman for the game against Newcastle.
Hoolahan was recalled to the starting line-up against Walter Zenga’s side, playing behind goalscorer Cameron Jerome, who put the Canaries one up in the second minute.
Norwich’s Cameron Jerome celebrates scoring their first goal
The 34-year-old had been left out for the game at St James’ Park, which Norwich lost 4-3, but Neil has explained his decision as to why Hoolahan was more suited for the game at Molineux.
“He is a special player for us and I felt the game against Newcastle didn’t suit him,” Neil told pinkun.com.
“At 3-1 up against Newcastle that probably looked right but I wanted to bring him back in for Wolves because I know in certain games, when teams are quite open and play with one sitting midfielder, the quality Wes has got.”
With Newcastle dominating most of the game against Norwich, there would have been limited chances for Hoolahan to create chances in and around the box, with the Canaries playing on the break for most of the 90 minutes, so Neil’s decision was probably justified despite the late defeat.
Norwich City’s Wes Hoolahan has his penalty saved by Nottingham Forest’s Vladimir Stojkovic
Bringing the play-maker back in for the Wolves game showed the young manager’s tactical awareness, and the reaction from Hoolahan shows the strong relationship he has with his manager.
The result was a big one at Wolves, having passed up the opportunity to lay down a real marker during the week against Newcastle, but the 2-1 win sees Norwich in second place, two points behind leaders Huddersfield.
Nottingham Forest’s Chris Cohen in action with Norwich City’s Wes Hoolahan
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