Blog: Questions for Kenny Jackett but few answers
Every day a football manager is in a job means he is one day closer to the sack.
Wolves manager Kenny Jackett will go into Saturday's clash with Burnley, knowing his body language and demeanour will be examined for any signs of stress and emotion,
Such is the way when a manager's position is under scrutiny. He is never, these days, given time to work things through, to turn things around or experiment. If results don't come, and come quickly, the calls for his head increase tenfold.
Yes patience is a commodity in short supply in football, but Jackett's statistics for the 2015/16 campaign so far look depressing to say the least. Wolves have won just five of their 15 games this season, losing four out of their last five.
Has he had enough time? The pragmatists will simply say that we are less than a third of the way into the season and there are plenty more points up for grabs. They will also argue that Jackett should be given until at least the halfway mark of the season, if not longer, to try to turn things around.
But the reality is more prosaic. Poor summer recruitment, questionable decisions and the lack of a settled starting line-up have all translated into a dismal start to the season. Wolves have taken three points from the last five games and no one would be backing them for promotion now.
Every side that has been successful in the Championship promotion race in recent years has had one key attribute in common: versatility. Or simply, enough options to be able to mix-and-match when the chips are down.
Part of Jackett's downfall this season has been his side's inability to threaten and score anywhere near as much without the departed Bakary Sako and the injured Nouha Dicko. They have also been hard hit by the loss of centre-back Richard Stearman, who was inexplicitly sold to Fulham.
But perhaps the most worrying facet of this story is that last season's talisman Benik Afobe appears to have lost his goalscoring touch.
Last season, alongside Sako and Dicko, Afobe flourished as part of a formidable Wolves frontline that terrorised defences and bagged over 40 league goals. Without the duo, he has still notched six in the league this season but he is currently goalless in the last four games at a time when Wolves need him the most.
Whilst you cannot expect a centre-forward to deliver all the time – there will inevitably be a spell when they struggle – no one else seems able to make up the shortfall.
Fellow striker Adam Le Fondre has added just three in his last 12 appearances, midfielder David Edwards has a better return with four in 11, and recent signing Grant Holt has barely kicked a ball in 10 months.
Meanwhile his reluctance to give fringe players such as Nathan Byrne and Jed Wallace meaningful game time in a settled position further impedes his options. Not to mention the negative impact on their individual confidence.
Tuesday night's defeat at Bristol City was a particularly gruesome example. Jackett withdraw the lively Byrne along with Afobe at half-time in favour of Le Fondre and Holt, which resulted in a change of system – it backfired spectacularly.
In addition to Jackett's on-the-field woes, events behind the scenes are surely not helping matters. It's not an excuse – other clubs have avoided off-the-field distractions and done well – but it is a form of mitigation.
In a league such as the Championship, with promotion to the Premier League at stake, the penalty for failure is sky high. For Wolves, continued failure sees the club slip further and further behind their promotion rivals, and they simply cannot afford to become an irrelevance.
The Wolves board is, so far, refusing to panic, and is not expected to make any move to jettison the manager anytime soon. But no matter how supportive the club is, they know football is a results-driven business and even their patience will have limits.
If they want to curtail all spending – as it would appear – and concentrate on keeping Wolves in the Championship for next season, then that's their choice. However, they must realise that such cutbacks could severely impact on their search for the right owner.
Whether the club's hierarchy continue to stick by Jackett or not – and much could depend on the next few games – they desperately need to release some sort of statement signifying their intentions if nothing else than to give the staff and players some stability.
Will there be money to spend in January and is promotion still the target? Or are us fans expected to just accept this one as an unplanned transitional season?
Sadly, it's the story of our season: plenty of questions but not enough answers.
