HOWLING AT THE DOOM<\/p>\n
With the Sky Sports Monday Night Football cameras rolling at Molineux, Wolves fans seized the additional publicity surrounding their latest inevitable loss<\/a> to stage a protest against their club\u2019s ownership. When the match against Manchester United kicked off, they massed on the concourse, a sea of old gold and black leaving the stands conspicuously empty for the opening 10 minutes. In a moment of seemingly cosmic irony \u2013 or perhaps a cruel act of counter-defiance \u2013 referee Michael Salisbury didn\u2019t blow his final whistle until the clock had ticked over into the 10th minute of added time. By then, the game was long over as a contest and Wolves had succumbed to another defeat, a depressing staple of their season. Fans who stayed home and watched the broadcast will have seen the affable James Maddison tell David Jones and Jamie Carragher about enjoying \u201cthe little wins\u201d (fathering twins, getting back on the grass and growing a ducktail mullet) during his recovery from serious knee-knack. They must have been wondering if they will ever get to see Wolves register a win again.<\/p>\n In so far as there were any minor positives to be taken from a 4-1 home defeat in which they were seriously flattered by the scoreline, Wolves did at least manage to score a goal for the first time in more than 600 minutes of league football, while the crowd\u2019s former favourite, Matheus Cunha, drew a clearly frustrating blank despite peppering Sam Johnstone\u2019s goal. Otherwise it was business as usual for a team that have taken just two points from their opening 15 matches and in conceding Monday night\u2019s slapstick opener, performed a passable imitation of 11 drunks who had been press-ganged from a nearby pub after a day on the sauce and sent out in full Wolves kit, despite never having seen anyone play football before. \u201cI understand the frustration,\u201d blathered manager Rob Edwards, after his players were booed off by fans who had stuck the defeat out until the bitter end. \u201cI won\u2019t tell fans what to do. I\u2019d love them to support the players but they have to see effort and commitment in return. Mistakes were punished and that filtered through. There was an anger in the stadium. The lads are trying. The supporters are angry and I get it.\u201d<\/p>\n While there is no shortage of justified anger from fans paying a minimum of \u00a3735 for season tickets at Molineux to watch their team achieve a historically dreadful run of results, the majority of it is being directed at the Fosun ownership group and its chief suit, Jeff Shi. Wolves\u2019 myriad on-field shortcomings can be attributed to a gradual erosion in squad quality that has occurred on the watch of owners who repeatedly sell star players without buying adequate replacements, and then plough through head coaches when results inevitably don\u2019t go their way. \u201cIt\u2019s the toughest league in the world and we came into a team who hadn\u2019t won since April,\u201d sniffed Edwards. \u201cI wasn\u2019t anticipating a quick turnaround.\u201d With powers of perception like that, Edwards\u2019 decision to abandon Boro for this particular bin fire looks more baffling with each passing game.<\/p>\n LIVE ON BIG WEBSITE<\/p>\n Join Rob Smyth at 8pm for red-hot updates on Inter 3-3 Liverpool, while Niall McVeigh has the rest of the night\u2019s men\u2019s Bigger Cup action covered in his clockwatch at the same time. And if that\u2019s not enough 8pm action for you, Sarah Rendell will be all over Arsenal 3-0 FC Twente in women\u2019s Bigger Cup.<\/p>\n \u200aQUOTE OF THE DAY<\/p>\n \u201cWhy are female commentators getting abuse more than anyone else? How can we report it? And how do we get convictions? Something that is tangible and makes people sit up and realise they can\u2019t come on here and hurl abuse because they feel like it. Gone are the times when you say don\u2019t listen to them, turn the other cheek. Just ignore them. No. Why should the girls ignore abuse? We\u2019ve had it for years where we\u2019d just ignore it. Who are we to say ignore it? We should be helping them report it, to make them feel OK in that space\u201d \u2013 Emile Heskey talks to Sam Cunningham<\/a> about stepping up to tackle abuse in football, his desire to protect his sons and Liverpool\u2019s woes.<\/p>\n Emile Heskey at home, earlier. Photograph: Christopher Thomond\/The Guardian<\/p>\n Please! No mo\u2019 of the low Slot-Salah show from Peter Oh (yesterday\u2019s Football Daily letters<\/a>). All his alliteration gave me a pain in the assonance. We all know, though, it\u2019s about the dough\u201d \u2013 Justin Kavanagh.<\/p>\n Surprised how negative the English commentary is about Salah. Do I really have to listen to journos and old players rant on and on about team loyalty? Last year turned out to be the final year of Kloppball, not the first year of Slotball. If a manager can\u2019t figure out how to get along with Salah, nor get his very expensive signings to perform in a way that justifies his mistreatment of the Egyptian, he\u2019s not up to it\u201d \u2013 Richard McGahey.<\/p>\n After all the much-deserved plaudits he\u2019s received in recent weeks, a final doff of the cap to Martin O\u2019Neill. He rejoined Celtic after they\u2019d just lost to Hearts<\/a>, by far the best team in the Scottish Premiership (I know, I know), and then signed off with a win<\/a>, promptly before they had to play against, and inevitably lose to, Hearts again<\/a>. As O\u2019Neill clearly knows, the secret to great management, like comedy, is timing\u201d \u2013 Noble Francis.<\/p>\n Back in those heady days when Trevor Francis and Chris Waddle graced Sheffield Wednesday with their presence, I was working for the club\u2019s official sponsor (the amounts involved would make everyone laugh today). This gave me access \u2013 I\u2019m not saying I\u2019m proud about it \u2013 to tickets for the FA Cup semi-final between Wednesday and Sheffield United played at the grand old Wembley stadium. On the big day, we all forgot that both teams had fans working for the company until the Unitedites mixed among us jumped in the air to celebrate the first goal! Fighting was avoided, and the game ended better for Wednesday (perhaps Noble Francis was also there?), although we lost to Arsenal in both cup finals that year (and didn\u2019t get into Europe!). Anyway, I was reminded about the experience a couple of days ago when my eldest son, Santander born and bred, went to watch Racing play away at C\u00e1diz and could only get a ticket to sit with the home fans. With a certain amount of luck and perhaps even some help from the ref, Racing scored in the 93rd minute to win 3-2. And yet after the game, as my son and his friends walked back to their lodgings in their green, white and black scarves, no less than five C\u00e1diz fans approached to CONGRATULATE THEM on the win!\u201d \u2013 Matthew Kipwell.<\/p>\n Send letters to the.boss@theguardian.com<\/a>. Today\u2019s prizeless letter o\u2019 the day winner is \u2026 Noble Francis. Terms and conditions for our competitions, when we run them, can be viewed here<\/a>.<\/p>\n Need a Christmas gift for that special football-obsessed person in your life? Well the Big Website Bookshop has loads of great reads available. You can even just treat yourself. Get shopping here<\/a>!<\/p>\n Christmas is coming. Illustration: Guardian BookshopRECOMMENDED LOOKING<\/p>\n It\u2019s David Squires on \u2026 Mohamed Salah\u2019s explosive interview<\/a> and chaos at Liverpool.<\/p>\n Tick, tick, tick, tick \u2026 boom! Illustration: David Squires\/The GuardianNEWS, BITS AND BOBS<\/p>\n Celtic chairman Peter Lawwell has paid tribute to John \u201cDixie\u201d Deans, who has died aged 79. \u201cDixie was a great Celt and one of the finest goalscorers ever to have played for the club,\u201d he said. \u201cI was fortunate enough to have watched him play throughout his career and he played his part in the successes we enjoyed in the 1970s, not least in those unforgettable hat-tricks he scored against Hibs in two cup finals at Hampden.\u201d<\/p>\n England winger Jessica Naz will miss the rest of the season<\/a> after sustaining the second ACL injury of her career.<\/p>\n A court has jailed 20 suspects, including Super Lig players, pending trial in a betting investigation that Turkish football\u2019s chief suit said may widen. \u201cFor years, the problems of Turkish football have been swept under the carpet,\u201d roared Ibrahim Haciosmanoglu. \u201cSuch disgraceful decisions have been made, such crimes covered up, and the sole responsibility for our current situation is a lack of will.\u201d<\/p>\n Wrexham\u2019s movie bro owners, Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, have sold a stake<\/a> in the club to the USA USA USA-based private equity investors Apollo, less than three months after the Red Dragons received a cool \u00a314m in state aid<\/a>.<\/p>\n Cole Palmer has not travelled with Chelsea to Atalanta as he continues to be managed after suffering toe-knack with some clumsy footwork at home.<\/p>\n Fans of sixth-tier Macclesfield are getting their tinfoil FA Cup ready after drawing holders Crystal Palace at home in the third round. View the full list of fixtures here<\/a>.<\/p>\n Macclesfield players get their celebrations on after scoring in the second-round win at Slough. Photograph: Nigel French\/PA<\/p>\n Under-pressure Xabi Alonso reckons Manchester City\u2019s visit to the Bernab\u00e9u is the perfect way for Madrid to bounce back after their bobbins home defeat by Celta Vigo. \u201cWe\u2019re all in this together,\u201d barked Alonso. \u201cUnited! Convinced that this is an opportunity!! We need to have the energy to connect with the Bernab\u00e9u!!!\u201d<\/p>\n And it\u2019s nearly Christmas so, of course, someone<\/a> has been left home alone<\/a>.<\/p>\n THE ROAD TO WEMBLEY<\/p>\n Beloved of Geopolitics World Cup crooner Robbie Williams and darts godfather Phil Taylor, Port Vale are now Football Daily\u2019s adopted team in the FA Cup. Having beaten Bristol Rovers courtesy of a goal by Ben Waine on Saturday at Vale Park, the Cup is providing respite \u2013 a \u201cwonderful distraction\u201d in the words of manager Darren Moore \u2013 for a team currently rock bottom of League One. The boys from Burslem will hope to repeat the magic of 1988 when the Valiants, in the fourth round, downed mighty Tottenham \u2013 Chris Waddle, Gary Mabbutt, Clive Allen et al \u2013 courtesy of goals from Ray Walker and Phil Sproson. The opponents they pulled in the third round tombola<\/a> are Fleetwood, the Cod Army mid-table in League Two. Both clubs will seek progress with the hope of meeting one of the giants in the fourth round.<\/p>\n RECOMMENDED PLAYING<\/p>\n The Guardian has kicked off a new chapter in puzzles with the launch of its first daily football game<\/a>, On the ball. It is now live in the app for both iOS and Android \u2026 so what are you waiting for? Get stuck in!\u200a<\/p>\n STILL WANT MORE?\u200a<\/p>\n Yara El-Shaboury recalls William Gallas, Roy Keane and Ronaldo letting fly as she charts some of the game\u2019s most explosive outbursts<\/a>.<\/p>\n Fighting talk: Raheem Sterling, Roy Keane and William Gallas. Composite: Guardian Picture Desk<\/p>\n Jonathan Wilson sees no winners<\/a> in Mohamed Salah\u2019s war footing with Liverpool.<\/p>\n These are troubling times for Liam Rosenior\u2019s Strasbourg, who have a Chelsea-bound captain suspended for \u201cfailing to respect the values, expectations, and rules of the club\u201d, writes Rapha\u00ebl Jucobin<\/a>.<\/p>\n And in the latest edition of Moving the Goalposts, Temwa Chawinga talks exclusively<\/a> about coping without her sibling and grabbing everything on the NWSL table.<\/p>\n RECOMMENDED SUBSCRIBING<\/p>\n Prefer pictures to words? Well, Big Website has a brand new weekly newsletter, highlighting the very best sport photographs around. You can subscribe here<\/a>. But please do still stick with your faithful Football Daily, too.<\/p>\n MEMORY LANE<\/p>\n