{"id":660320,"date":"2025-10-08T11:23:45","date_gmt":"2025-10-08T15:23:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/?p=660320"},"modified":"2025-10-08T11:23:45","modified_gmt":"2025-10-08T15:23:45","slug":"wolves-must-step-up-relegation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/2025\/10\/08\/wolves-must-step-up-relegation\/","title":{"rendered":"Five Players Who Must Step Up If Wolves Are To Avoid Relegation"},"content":{"rendered":"

Wolverhampton Wanderers have endured a brutal start to the 2025\/26 season, finding themselves rooted to the bottom of the table after a string of poor results. Their worst-ever start to a league season in club history, combined with the exits of key contributors from last season, has left the squad desperately seeking leaders and match-winners.<\/p>\n

To stop this decline and steer clear of the relegation zone, Wolves need more than an incremental improvement; they need individual players to step up. Here are five players who will be vital in the club’s battle for survival this season. These players must step up in terms of influence, consistency, and output if the West Midlands club is to retain its Premier League status.<\/p>\n

At Rock Bottom of The Premier League, Wolves Need Key Figures to Deliver Now or Face The Drop<\/h2>\n

5. Marshall Munetsi<\/h3>\n

With Wolves often overrun in midfield, Marshall Munetsi’s presence has never been more vital. The Zimbabwean international brings energy, physicality, and aggression, traits that have been lacking in too many of Wolves’ recent defeats.<\/p>\n

Read More:<\/strong> What Wolves Worst League Start in History is Telling Us<\/a><\/p>\n

However, Munetsi must show more discipline in his positioning and decision-making. He’s capable of breaking up play effectively, but too often finds himself isolated. If he can offer more consistency in front of goal and provide balance to the midfield, Wolves will have a stronger foundation to build attacks from.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

4. J\u00f8rgen Strand Larsen<\/h3>\n

Last season, Strand Larsen’s goals were central to the club’s fight for survival. As the focal point of the attack, he must resume that role, especially given the midfield’s lack of creativity so far. His work rate and hold-up play are admirable, but he often cuts a frustrated figure alone up top with no service or creativity giving him chances to convert. The Wanderers need him to rediscover his ruthless edge in front of goal. Finishing half-chances could be the difference between a draw and a crucial win. If he can rediscover his form and confidence, then the team’s attacking output could increase dramatically.<\/p>\n

3. Jhon Arias<\/h3>\n

Signed in the summer from Fluminense, Jhon Arias carries significant expectations. He was viewed as a replacement for Matheus Cunha and the new spark in Wolves’ attack. The Premier League has been a significant learning curve for the attacker who has just one npXG+xAG in almost 400 minutes.<\/p>\n

Read More:<\/strong> No Wins Since April: Wolves Gamble on Vitor Pereira<\/a><\/p>\n

Arias must start producing tangible numbers, goals, assists, and key passes to justify his place in the starting lineup. He’s shown flashes of pace and trickery, but too often fades from matches. If Wolves are to climb up the table, Arias needs to consistently provide end product and become a real attacking threat, particularly when chances are scarce.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

2. Fer L\u00f3pez<\/h3>\n

Spanish midfielder Fer L\u00f3pez has only played limited minutes in the Premier League so far, but his brief cameos have offered rare glimpses of creativity and composure in a side that is lacking an attacking spark. Fans have taken notice and are continually calling for his inclusion every week. However, manager V\u00edtor Pereira has so far been reluctant to drop Hwang Hee-chan, sticking with experience over potential. This approach has frustrated fans who believe L\u00f3pez’s technical quality and quick passing could help Wolves build more fluid attacks.<\/p>\n

Read More:<\/strong> Wolves Top Five Managers Of All Time<\/a><\/p>\n

If Pereira does give him a proper run, L\u00f3pez must show he can influence games over 90 minutes, not just in short bursts. His ability to link midfield to attack and unlock defences could make a real difference in Wolves’ battle for points.<\/p>\n

1. Sam Johnstone<\/h3>\n

Since arriving at Molineux, Sam Johnstone<\/a> has had to be patient, but in recent weeks, he’s finally managed to wrestle the number one spot from Jos\u00e9 S\u00e1. His performances have brought a measure of stability to a shaky back line, with sharp reflexes and vocal leadership beginning to earn him plaudits.<\/p>\n

Now that form needs to continue. Wolves’ defensive record has been among the league’s worst this season, and Johnstone’s presence between the sticks could be vital in tightening things up. Commanding his box, communicating clearly with his defenders, and maintaining concentration will all be essential if the side are to grind out results. Given how Fragile their confidence has become, a reliable goalkeeper could be the difference between narrow defeats and valuable draws, or even wins.<\/p>\n

Avoiding relegation will not come from one miraculous run, as it did last season; it will require consistent performances from the core players. If these five players can raise their levels, the Molineux club still has a realistic chance of survival. But with mounting pressure on Pereira and growing unrest among supporters, time is quickly running out for this group to deliver.<\/p>\n

Featured Image<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"wolverhampton
IMAGO \/ Action Plus 10th May 2025 Molineux Stadium, Wolverhampton, Wolves, West Midlands, England Premier League Football, Wolverhampton Wanderers versus Brighton and Hove Albion A general view of Molineux showing the pitch and stands with the corner flag in the foreground PUBLICATIONxNOTxINxUK ActionPlus12785140 GodfreyxPitt<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Wolverhampton Wanderers have endured a brutal start to the 2025\/26 season, finding themselves rooted to the bottom of the table after a string of poor results. Their worst-ever start to a league season in club history, combined with the exits of key contributors from last season, has left the squad desperately seeking leaders and match-winners. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5441,"featured_media":656254,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2510,3],"tags":[32331,32439,2433],"class_list":["post-660320","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-wolves","category-premier-league","tag-fer-lopez","tag-jorgen-strand-larsen","tag-sam-johnstone"],"modified_by":"Alex Richards, LWOF Editor","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/660320","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5441"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=660320"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/660320\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":660336,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/660320\/revisions\/660336"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/656254"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=660320"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=660320"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=660320"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}