Forget Silva: Wolves flop who lost possession every 2.7 touches failed Lage's big test - opinion

Wolverhampton Wanderers suffered another major blow to their hopes of securing a top-six finish with a 1-0 loss at West Ham United on Sunday afternoon, with Hammers midfielder Tomas Soucek scoring the sole goal around the hour mark.

The defeat comes just three days after Bruno Lage’s side were crushingly beaten in the 95th minute by Arsenal on Thursday evening, five miles away from Sunday’s venue at The Emirates.

Having taken an early lead through Hwang Hee-Chan, the West Midlands side conceded twice in the final 13 minutes to lose against another serious contender in the race for Europe.

Having lost twice in the capital within the space of four days, Wolves sit eighth, five points off sixth-placed Arsenal who also have two games in hand.

What will also be of concern for Lage is the injury to right wing-back Nelson Semedo, who was absent in East London with Ki-Jana Hoever taking his place. However, it was a tricky afternoon for the 20-year-old.

According to SofaScore, the Dutchman was Wolves’ second-worst player, picking up a 6.3/10 rating behind Fabio Silva’s 6.1 in what was a slightly rotated side after two trips to London in quick succession.

Sunday’s game was just Hoever’s seventh Premier League appearance of the season, having started on just two other occasions this campaign in the top-flight.

The youngster had a nervy performance, losing the ball on 20 occasions, having made 55 touches all game, meaning that the Dutchman gave away possession every 2.7 touches.

Although he was able to make three tackles, other departments of the wing-back’s defensive game lacked, with Hoever making just one clearance and an interception with no blocks whilst winning just 36% of his duels.

It’s a wing-back’s job to be flexible in