Gary O’Neil’s Wolves side have got off to a nightmare start, finding themselves rock bottom of the Premier League after six games played.
Their only point so far came in a 1-1 draw against Nottingham Forest, with their worst loss coming at the hands of Chelsea in a 6-2 drubbing at Molineux.
Wolves have conceded the most goals in the league with 16 in six games, and O’Neil could be forced into more changes this weekend, with his side being hit with a virus this week.
How he must wish they still had a certain Max Kilman at their disposal.
Max Kilman's record at Wolves
Kilman left Wolves this summer after spending six years at the club, joining West Ham for a fee of around £40m. The 27-year-old defender made 151 appearances for the Old Gold, scoring three goals, providing three assists, and totalling 13,090 minutes played.
The Englishman was an important figure at the club, spending the entirety of last season as the captain.
But, losing him hasn’t only affected leadership, it has also affected their on quality on-pitch, such as passing out from the back, and defensive stability, having conceded 16 goals already this term.
Kilman has started all of West Ham’s games so far (eight), providing one assist, and contributing to two clean sheets in his 720 minutes played. But Wolves may well have their replacement already in the pipeline, in the shape of youngster, Alfie Pond.
Alfie Pond, the Kilman heir
Last week, The Athletic reported that Pond is “on standby” for his Premier League debut, following a virus outbreak at the club. O’Neil has already lost Yerson Mosquera to a knee injury, leaving just Craig Dawson, Santiago Bueno and Toti as senior centre-back options.
Pond could be the beneficiary of Mosquera’s injury, having now played 28 games for the Wolves U21 side, scoring four goals and totaling 2,281 minutes. The 20-year-old has already had some minutes of senior football too, playing nine games for Stockport County last season.
So, how would he fit into the current defensive shape at Molineux?
You can see when comparing the stats of Mosquera and Dawson below that the former is the aggressor of the duo, looking to apply pressure, be aggressive in the duel, and win the ball.
Progressive Carries
0.00
0.61
Progressive Passes
1.43
1.82
Passes Attempted
49.0
53.9
Pass Completion %
85.4%
84.3%
Passes into Final Third
3.27
2.42
Tackles
2.24
1.21
Blocks
2.65
1.52
Interceptions
2.04
1.25
Aerials Won
2.24
1.52
On the flip side, the latter is certainly more conserved, ready to cover and offer support while leading the backline.
This could be the perfect environment for Pond to thrive, replacing Mosquera in the side, being the aggressive dueler, looking to replicate those high defensive actions of Mosquera, whilst Dawson takes that leadership cover role, helping the youngster through the game, and taking more on ball responsibility.
Now, if Dawson had been one of the names caught by the virus, it would pose other problems, but if not, Wolves could unleash their next Kilman & Dawson centre-back duo, with Pond taking the step-up to the senior side.
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