Wolves faced a disappointing 3-0 defeat against West Ham United, and the absence of their £7 million goalkeeper, Jose Sa, raised eyebrows among fans. Gary O’Neil shed light on the surprising absence, revealing that Sa had sustained a shoulder injury in training due to a collision with a teammate.
The Molineux side struggled at the London Stadium, with Mohammed Kudus netting twice and Jarrod Bowen sealing the victory in the second half. Despite Pablo Sarabia’s apparent goal that would have brought them back into the game, VAR ruled it offside. Furthermore, frustration mounted among Wolves supporters when Vladimir Coufal escaped a red card for an elbow on Jean-Ricner Bellegarde just before halftime.
Sa’s absence was unexpected, catching fans off guard when the team news was revealed. O’Neil had not mentioned anything about Sa’s condition in the Thursday press conference, leaving supporters puzzled about the sudden change.
The revelation came after the match that Sa had suffered a shoulder injury during Friday’s training session. Initially seeming ready to play, Sa experienced discomfort on the morning of the game, prompting his omission from the squad. O’Neil clarified, stating, “Sa had a collision with one of the outfield players yesterday in training and was fine, he finished training and traveled down on the bus and woke up this morning and had a bit of a lack of range of movement in his shoulder, so he wasn’t available to play.”
Despite the setback, O’Neil emphasized that such incidents are part of the game, offering no excuses and expressing the need for improvement. The hope is that Sa’s shoulder injury is not severe, and there are indications that it may not be, considering he completed the training session after the collision.
Dan Bentley replaced Sa in the West Ham clash but did not deliver an outstanding performance. While Bentley had previously showcased his abilities against Arsenal and Burnley, questions arose about his performance, particularly on Kudus’ first goal and Bowen’s subsequent goal. Although it remains uncertain if Sa would have fared better, there is consensus that Sa generally outshines Bentley as a goalkeeper.
Wolves now await Sa’s return to fitness, hoping that the shoulder injury won’t sideline him for an extended period. The fact that Sa managed to complete the training session suggests a potential swift recovery, offering optimism that he might be available for the upcoming Chelsea game.
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