Moxey stands by McCarthy

Wolves chief happy with manager's choices

Last updated: 16th December 2009   Subscribe to RSS Feed

Moxey stands by McCarthy

McCarthy: Under fire for selections

The fans do not have the benefit of training with the team day-in, day-out and Mick McCarthy's job is to pick the team that he feels is best to win games and keep up in the Premier League.

Moxey on McCarthy's wholesale changes
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Wolves chief executive Jez Moxey has backed Mick McCarthy's decision to make wholesale changes to his starting XI against Manchester United.

The Molineux tactician made 10 changes from his team that won 1-0 at Spurs last Saturday for their midweek match at Old Trafford.

Wolves put up a battling display and could have taken the lead through George Friend, but once Wayne Rooney slotted home from the penalty spot the Red Devils were always in control.

McCarthy came under fire from visiting fans over his team selection, with supporters chanting "where's our first-team" and "£42 quid to watch the reserves" during the contest.

However, Moxey is a little surprised by the criticism and has every confidence McCarthy made the decisions he has with the club's long-term future at heart.

Surprised

"I can understand why fans were unhappy. I think everyone was surprised by the team that Mick selected," he told Sky Sports News.

"However, the fans do not have the benefit of training with the team day-in, day-out and Mick McCarthy's job is to pick the team that he feels is best to win games and keep us in the Premier League.

"He did that with the best interests of the club at heart.

"I think if George Friend could have converted his chance then who knows we might have been able to hold on the win as we did at Tottenham on Saturday."

Premier League regulations stipulate teams must field their strongest line-ups where possible and Moxey does not believe McCarthy's side had no chance of a result.

"We have a squad of 24 to 25 players," he continued. "That team started with six international players on the field and another four on the bench. We try and work on a system where we have two quality players for every position.

"I think Mick's picked the team that he felt could do the best possible job for us on the evening, otherwise he would have picked another team.

"We have a mini injury crisis at this moment in time. We've lost Kightly, Edwards, Keogh and Matt Murray again. We've got Foley coming back from injury. We've got a huge amount of injuries.

Marathon

"It's a marathon, not a sprint. It's a 38-game season. Our objective is to consolidate in the Premier League this season. Mick's job is to make sure we stay in the Premier League. Everybody at Wolves wants that.

"We have a manager who's responsible for picking the team that can enable that. Believe you me, we're taking the Premier League very seriously."

It has been mooted fans could be compensated after not seeing what they thought was a full-strength side, however, Moxey has no plans of making a goodwill gesture as an early Christmas present.

"There are no plans to refund the £42 that they were chanting. You play games with a squad of players.

"Sometimes you win and sometimes you lose and sometimes you draw. We've got plenty more games to go.

"He's done it once, he might do it again. Mick McCarthy's is his own man. It's not for me to try and influence what he thinks is the right team to win a game."

Comments (2)

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Thomas Phillips (Wolverhampton Wanderers fan) says...

After the initial shock and anger I felt when McCarthy released the team sheet I stopped to ponder what the reasonings could be. We were playing the champions Manchester United, a loss was almost certain after our current run of form. Resting the ten-first team players was a stroke of genius in my opinion. We have a very winable game against Burnley at the weekend.

Posted 13:56 16th December 2009

Gary Hughes (Wolverhampton Wanderers fan) says...

What really annoys us Wolves fans is the reaction of the media. It was only the minority which were singing we want our money back. Many of us were still singing in the last minute. We beat Spurs on Saturday, we were chasing the ball for 87 minutes of course we couldn't play the same team. The big teams do it all the time but because we don't spend the money the big clubs do there is this massive reaction. I support my team no matter what players wear the shirt. It is the fans who only go to watch the Wolves when we play against Man United who want a refund. True fans don't.

Posted 13:24 16th December 2009
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