Wear Your Heart On Your Sleeve Van Damme It

Our good mate Smithy chalked up a poll only a couple of days ago, asking as to who should take over at left back in the anticipated absence of the injured Stephen Ward.

Despite his lack of commitment to our club, based plainly around the fact he has stated that he wants to go home in January, Wolves fans have put that to one side with a resounding 69% backing him to fill the void- and I agree.

Van Damme brings great presence to the side, is aggressive, tackles well, has shown he can work the line, and can certainly pick a pass. Add to that the fact his height would be a welcome addition to our rather short back line, look how many headers we have conceded from and he almost picks himself, for the position of course, that he was signed for.

I wish Nenad Milijias would have a word in his ear. Milijias came from the same pool, winning trophies at the biggest club in his own country, and despite his pedigree as an established international, had a shock when he arrived in England- new country, culture, language, then of course there's the football.

In his first few games Milijias shone for me, but he never got to grips with the speed of the game and the demands of the physical side. Instead of sulking, and jetting out over the summer, he listened to all the support the club gave him, and has thanked them for publicly, stuck to his task in training and has finally won his place back in the side more than a year later.

His creative threat aside, speaking for itself, we have seen Milijias chasing players down and throwing himself into tackles over the course of the last four games and his all round performances suggest he will be difficult to shift from the team.

Despite his obvious talent, Van Damme- as we speak, still clearly has the support of the fans.

I believe he is the best player for the position and who knows, if he enjoys a run of 5 or 6 games and makes the shirt his own, maybe he will start enjoying life a bit more and we will profit from our investment after all.

Despite our present position, I stick to my pre season backing that we can finish 12th. The club is moving in the right direction in every aspect assuming we do indeed stay up this season. He should have a read of the history books, stop and take a look around the place, realize the support he still has from us, and consider himself lucky before entertaining thoughts of returning to the lofty heights of Belgium.

New York City Wolf

Click here to join in the debate on the club forum.