Wolverhampton Wanderers were held to a frustrating 1-1 draw by Newcastle United at the weekend and Matt Doherty has been singled out for some harsh criticism from sections of the club’s support.
The 27-year-old received the lowest performance rating of all Nuno Espirito Santo’s outfield players according to WhoScored.com and therefore it appears the criticism of his performance at the weekend was somewhat justified.
Do Wolves need to replace Matt Doherty this month?
Yes
No
Don’t think we can moan at Dendonker but Doc I would deffo agree with!
— Ryan (@Ryan67419305) January 12, 2020
Hasn’t looked right from day one. Missed pre season with injury, had the cancer scare and looks knackered at the moment. Hard position to play when you ain’t quite right
— asa robinson (@asarobinson666) January 12, 2020
Awful. Off the pace
— Rich (@farrowmr) January 12, 2020
doherty need to be gone asap he’s awful, a few tap ins keeps him in the team
— ?? (@wwfcSamm_) January 11, 2020
Doc had another shocker in all honesty and is struggling right now. However it’s not difficult just to run inside and take men away opening up the space for Adama but oh no just stands next to him #wwfc
— Simmo (@simbawolf7) January 11, 2020
Sorry but how was Doherty on for the 90 minutes of that game, he was awful ? #wwfv
— Ry (@RyanLeePW) January 11, 2020
What do we think?
There is no doubt about it, Matt Doherty’s form has taken a bad turn in recent weeks with fans slamming him, but the harsh criticism of a player who has been so key in Wolves’ rise under Nuno Espirito Santo seems a little excessive – having featured 120 times for the Portuguese manager (per Transfermarkt.co.uk).
Doherty joined the club from Bury back in 2013 and since his arrival has developed into a fine player. His rise to the top has seen him capped by the Republic of Ireland seven times to date and since the club’s promotion to the Premier League, he’s often been the subject of much praise.
Perhaps in the long-term, if Wolves are to push on and challenge for bigger and better things, they would need to upgrade in a number of areas, one of which could be the right-wing back position but Nuno will likely be confident his defender has what it takes to re-discover his best form in the very near future.