McCarthy already staring at relegation

MICK McCARTHY is a manager renowned for scoffing and snarling at statistics in equal measure but the last time Wolverhampton Wanderers suffered such a nightmare start to a season they were relegated.

Not since the campaign of 1983/84 have Wolves fallen to five successive defeats and the omens are not looking promising for McCarthy to navigate a route to survival for the third year running.

Despite being at such an embryonic stage of the season, this performance had the inescapable stench of relegation as Roy Hodgson finally ended his curse against Wolves as a Premier League manager at the sixth attempt.