McCarthy: It's a squad game
12 Nov 2009 - 13:30:05
Wolves boss Mick McCarthy has vowed to keep chopping and changing his side to suit the particular needs of opposing teams.
McCarthy's decision to relegate winger Michael Kightly to the bench for last weekend's 4-1 defeat at Arsenal and the previous Saturday's omission of striker Sylvan Ebanks-Blake from the side that drew 2-2 with Stoke City raised eyebrows.
However, McCarthy will continue to adapt his gameplan on a week-to-week basis as he bids to keep the Molineux club in the Premier League.
"I think it's horses for courses and I will think about how it is right to play in a game," he told the club's official website.
"I thought the strikers (Ebanks-Blake and Kevin Doyle) were great on Saturday and they put a real shift in.
"They did everything I asked of them. In the second half I asked them to play wide and try to rampage forward and they did it for a while.
"We're not in the Championship where we just went and played 4-4-2.
"I do prefer to play with two strikers, but who they might be and who we play in behind them might be slightly different now.
"I was looking at that first half-hour against Arsenal and I was pleased with how the players were playing.
"I've watched it back again and if someone could have told me how it would get to 3-0 at half-time, I would love to know because having reached 28 minutes, you would have thought we were going to be the leaders at half-time.
"It was nice that the players are responding to the changes we make and that they understand why need different approaches for different times.
"It's more than ever a squad game."