Gary O’Neil shares big Hwang Hee-chan injury update ahead of Wolves vs Man City
Wolves are hoping their fortunes on and off the pitch will transform when they return from the international break, starting with a home clash against Manchester City.
Currently sitting rock bottom of the Premier League table on one point, Wolves have conceded 21 goals in seven matches while shipping five against Brentford last time out.
It’s put increasing pressure on Gary O’Neil, who has the full backing of the Wolves hierarchy but does need to start picking up points and wins on the board.
O’Neil hasn’t been helped by casualties in the opening two months, with centre-back Yerson Mosquera suffering a season-ending injury in the defeat to Aston Villa.
The Colombian isn’t the only one nursing an injury, with attacker Hwang Hee-chan out of action.
Gary O’Neil’s verdict on Hwang Hee-chan’s injury
Hwang has struggled at the start of the season for Wolves and has looked off the pace for the most part.
The 28-year-old is yet to score or assist in the Premier League this term but perhaps more alarmingly, hasn’t looked anywhere close to the level he reached in 2023/24 where he plundered 12 top-flight goals.
Sadly, his fortune went from bad to worse during the international break, as Hwang suffered an ankle injury for South Korea against Jordan.
An expert initially said that Hwang’s injury didn’t look promising and he could have faced 8-10 weeks on the sidelines.
That was the worst-case scenario, while the best was him suffering just moderate damage to his ankle, meaning he’d only miss 3-4 weeks of action.
Speaking ahead of Wolves clash with Man City, O’Neil provided an update on Hwang, claiming the latter timeframe was more likely after damaging a ligament in his ankle.
“He’s injured a ligament in his ankle and it’s anything from a couple to a few weeks, nothing overly long,” O’Neil said as per journalist Liam Keen on X.
What Hwang must do while injured
Hwang has looked a shadow of his former self during the opening stages of the season. In fact, ever since he returned from the Asia Cup in February his form has dropped, scoring just twice in his previous 13 Premier League appearances.
For a player of his class and quality in front of goal, that return simply isn’t good enough. He must therefore use his spell on the sidelines to figure out where it’s going wrong for him.
