Wolves can afford to experiment in their final two Premier League matches this season and Gary O’Neil could start a player who impressed against Manchester City last weekend.
Wolves host Crystal Palace in the Premier League on Saturday afternoon with both sides displaying a contrast in form.
While Palace are unbeaten in their last five matches, including a 4-0 thrashing of Manchester United last time out, the Old Gold have won just one of their last nine top-flight outings.
Gary O’Neil’s men were thrashed 5-1 by Manchester City last weekend as Erling Haaland ran riot by scoring four goals.
The Wanderers were on the receiving end of some questionable VAR decisions once more as Man City’s first penalty arguably shouldn’t have stood, but there was one positive to come from the contest.
Jean-Ricner Bellegarde impressed off the bench vs Man City
Jean-Ricner Bellegarde has been out injured since the win over Fulham in March but the Frenchman returned to the squad against City and was hailed as ‘one positive’ from the bench by club hero Dave Edwards.
The 25-year-old has made 20 appearances in the Premier League since he arrived from Strasbourg on deadline day last year, with O’Neil still identifying his best position.
Although it hasn’t been the easiest of years for the talented attacker, he has shown flashes of brilliance in certain matches, running the show against Liverpool in September and impressing against Pep Guardiola’s side.
Bellegarde provided the cross for Hwang Hee-Chan’s consolation goal at the Etihad and was a constant livewire after being introduced at halftime, recording an 88% pass completion, attempting three ground duels and registering a shot on goal.
Gary O’Neil has to reward Jean-Ricner Bellegarde with a start v Crystal Palace
It promises to be a busy summer of incomings and outgoings at Molineux, but as Wolves have nothing to play for other than pride in their final two games, it wouldn’t hurt for O’Neil to experiment.
The Wolves boss has been short on attacking options in recent weeks however, after watching Bellegarde shine from the bench against the champions, he deserves to start against Palace.
O’Neil can deploy Bellegarde in an attacking position, perhaps from the right or left flank as a fixture against the Eagles is the perfect chance to show what he can do.
Stephen Warnock previously lauded the Frenchman as a ‘bright spark’, which is an accurate description of his playing style as he breaks forward with the ball and utilises his pace and power to hurt his opponents.
Starting Bellegarde either this weekend or against Liverpool, will also give O’Neil a better idea of his best position and that is one positive about having nothing to play for – the manager can experiment.