Wolves correspondent Tim Spiers believes that the side "missed" Daniel Podence in the second half of their 3-2 defeat to West Ham on Monday night.

What did Spiers say?

In the aftermath of the entertaining contest, The Athletic's Spiers took to Twitter to provide his assessment of the game.

He tweeted: "Full-time, Wolves 2 West Ham 3.

"Spirited comeback but too much damage done early on. Missed Podence in that second half. Silva's first goal since Jan and took it really well. But that defending."

How did the match unfold?

Initially, it had looked as though Wolves were set for a humbling loss at Molineux. West Ham raced out of the blocks and took a 3-0 lead inside 38 minutes thanks to goals from Jesse Lingard, Pablo Fornals and Jarrod Bowen.

However, the hosts gave themselves a lifeline just before half time when Leander Dendoncker headed home Adama Traore's cross.

Nuno Espirito Santo's side set up an exciting finale when Fabio Silva fired home the team's second, but it was not enough as West Ham clung on to secure all three points.

How did Podence fare on his return to the side?

Podence returned to the starting line-up for the first time in over two months after suffering a muscle tear in early February.

He enjoyed a bright first half, making three key passes and attempting three shots, as per WhoScored. Pedro Neto was the only Wolves player to better him in these categories, and he played the full 90 minutes.

Why was Podence replaced?

Despite statistics indicating that he was one of Wolves' better attacking players in the first half, Podence was replaced at the interval by Fabio Silva.

It is unclear as to whether this change was made as a precaution following Podence's lengthy absence prior to this game, or if it was a tactical move from Nuno.

Although Podence did have three efforts on goal before the break, none of them were on target, and Nuno may have been seeking more cutting edge from his side in the second half, so decided to bring on Silva.

What impact did that have?

Wolves actually won the second half 1-0, and Silva scored the goal, suggesting that the change worked.

According to WhoScored, that was his only shot of the whole half, though. His overall involvement was significantly less than Podence's as well.

Silva had just 15 touches of the ball compared to Podence's 28, and the teenage forward managed to complete just a single key pass - two fewer than Podence.

This highlights how, although Silva took his goal well, Wolves did miss the creativity of Podence in the second half.