'Drag the best from each other' - Wolves ace addresses standards as club hunt first Premier League win
Sam Johnstone has urged Wolves to keep fighting for each other after revealing how Rob Edwards has worked to raise standards at the club.
The goalkeeper knows wins are needed “ASAP” if Wolves are to pull off a stunning escape from relegation but believes performances have improved since Edwards took charge last month.
Wolves host Nottingham Forest on Wednesday night and Johnstone believes players must “drag” the best from each other, after lifting the lid on changes the new boss has made behind the scenes.
He said: “It has just been about nailing down defensively the standards, the standards of training and standards around the training ground.
“We are in a difficult place and we can’t accept little things which were being swept under the carpet and end up becoming bigger things.
“He (Edwards) is on the lads for standards, mentality and defensively.
“We also have to be on each other. It is not personal when you are asking your team-mate to do something.
“Football is difficult and we have to drag the best out of each other. The manager is doing that but when we are on the pitch we need to do it for each other and fight for each other.”
Johnstone felt Wolves were unlucky not to take at least a point from Sunday’s derby at Villa but believes they will get results if they maintain the same levels of performance.
But he also acknowledges the situation is becoming more urgent, with the team still without a win after 13 matches and nine points from safety.
The visit of Forest is the first of back-to-back home matches, with Manchester United to follow next Monday.
Johnstone said: “Every game is massive now, home and away. We need to get that win ASAP.
“We need the fans behind us, especially at home. Our place is a tough place to come when it is loud and we need them with us. Home and away, we need to start winning.
“I know it is as frustrating for the fans as it is for myself, the players and the staff.
“I know it is said a lot but I think we all need to come together - the fans at home games, away games, we all need each other.
“I think we have seen an improvement over the last two weeks and we are on an upwards curve, so hopefully that keeps coming.
“I am not saying we are going to go and win every game. There are going to be ups and downs.
“We just need that first win to kickstart us and give us that confidence and belief that we have good players and can win games.”
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