Wolves have sacked set-piece coach Jack Wilson as Gary O’Neil takes action to improve his leaky defence.

O’Neil is fighting for his future as head coach and has acted immediately following the dreadful 5-3 defeat at Brentford by parting company with the club’s first ever set-piece specialist.

Supporters angrily turned on the manager and the players during Saturday’s match, with O’Neil admitting it was the worst performance he has ever experienced as a manager.

O’Neil said after the match: “It’s the furthest I’ve seen the group from what we wanted to look like.

“It’s the worst game I’ve been involved in as a coach. This is the first evidence that we need a rethink.”

Previously with Manchester City as a performance analyst, Wilson was a summer appointment but was officially dismissed on Monday in a joint decision by O’Neil and the club’s hierarchy. There are no plans to replace him in the short-term.

Wolves have conceded a league-high 21 goals this season, and been punished from set-piece situations in five of their seven league matches. Perhaps of equal importance, Wolves have scored just once from a dead-ball position so far this season.

As reported by Telegraph Sport, Wolves are retaining their support for O’Neil and will give him time to turn the situation around.

Behind the scenes, Wolves are united, with chairman Jeff Shi and sporting director Matt Hobbs keen to support O’Neil through this run. In a joint interview with Telegraph Sport last week, Shi and Hobbs both spoke highly of O’Neil and his work ethic.

O’Neil has made the defence a priority over the international break and is considering whether to return to five at the back. This season Wolves have operated with a back four but O’Neil is expected to revert to a five when his team return to action against champions Manchester City on Oct 20.

Wolves are currently bottom of the table after six defeats in seven league matches.