The Debrief: Hee-Chan Hwang's Wolves turnaround, Marti Cifuentes at QPR and Wayne Rooney's Birmingham problem

In his latest column, Adam Bate examines Hee-Chan Hwang's transformation at Wolves, Marti Cifuentes' left-field appointment at Queens Park Rangers and wonders whether the timing of Wayne Rooney's arrival at Birmingham will undermine his ambitions...

Comment and Analysis @ghostgoal

Friday 3 November 2023 08:42, UK

It was pleasing to see Hee-Chan Hwang continue his fine form by scoring Wolves' equaliser against Newcastle on Saturday, particularly after conceding an unfortunate penalty. His turnaround in fortunes at Molineux has been extraordinary.

Hwang has now scored in his last six Premier League appearances in front of his home supporters, including all five this season. Not even his old Salzburg team-mate Erling Haaland has managed that. Only Mohamed Salah has outscored him at home.

Remarkably, Hwang's total of six for the season, home and away, is as many as any Wolves player managed to register throughout the entire campaign in any of the previous three seasons. Yet, he did not always have such a positive relationship with the fans.

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Shamefully, Hwang was booed onto the pitch against Southampton by a section of the support early last season. He had given the ball away for Newcastle's late equaliser at Molineux in the previous game and was in the midst of a 30-game scoreless run.

His time at Wolves looked likely to end in frustration, just as it had at Leipzig, where his opportunities dried up. Speaking to Hwang inside the dressing room at Molineux soon after his arrival, he said of that spell in Germany: «It caused my spirits to go down a bit.»

Yet, this journey has been different. Confidence that had been somewhat restored under Julen Lopetegui is now