Gary O’Neil has emphasized the need for his team to take responsibility for their 2-1 loss to Sheffield United last Saturday, rather than playing the blame game.
The decisive moment of the game occurred in the 100th minute when Oliver Norwood scored a penalty for Sheffield United after a contentious foul was called on Fabio Silva, following a challenge on George Baldock, as reported by Dan Stacey.
Although the Wolves manager was upset about another unfavorable decision, he acknowledged on the Wolves Weekly podcast that it’s crucial for his team to acknowledge their own role in the outcome at Bramall Lane.
O’Neil expressed, “We must recognize that we contributed to the result as well; it’s not solely because of a decision we disagreed with in the game’s final moments.” He added, “I’m disappointed with our part in the second goal, and of course, with the official’s involvement as well.”
The penalty decision that went against Wolves in this match had similarities to a previous incident at Molineux against Newcastle a week earlier. Anthony Taylor, the referee in the Newcastle game, was demoted to the Championship due to his error.
O’Neil conceded that there is frustration regarding the consistency of decisions going against his team, saying, “It seems like there is a series of decisions that have gone against us in a relatively short period of time.” He went on to say, “It’s a tough setback for the players, staff, and fans, especially considering the previous decisions.”
However, O’Neil stressed that focusing on blaming the officials for costing them points wouldn’t lead to improvement. Instead, he believes that the only way to get better is by understanding why they struggled in the second half and identifying areas for improvement.
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