Mick McCarthy insists Wolves are not guilty of adopting bully-boy tactics.

Wolves came in for criticism in some quarters for their approach to the 1-1 draw with Newcastle a fortnight ago when seven of their players were booked.

But McCarthy is quick to defend the approach of his team who will be looking to maintain their unbeaten start to the campaign at Fulham on Saturday.

The former Republic Of Ireland boss said: “I think this perception that we’re a team roughing people up is completely wrong.

“We’re a team competing in the Premier League and you have to do it. I think people have got the wrong end of the stick.

“Let me tell you – whatever went down against Newcastle a week last Saturday will be for the other 17 teams we’ve still got to play here.

“Everyone else that comes here have got the same to come. It’s a competitive place.”

McCarthy added: “People like to hang tags on things but don’t go labelling us a dirty side. We play our football and we compete.

“We tackle properly and we’re going to continue doing the same.

“If you don’t stand up to it, you get beat.

“Against Newcastle, we stood up to a really experienced team who I don’t think should even have been in the Championship.

“I was proud of the lads for the way we competed in both games. The Newcastle game was a tough old match – but there were no shrinking violets.”

Defender Ronald Zubar has been ruled out of the clash at Craven Cottage with a hamstring injury.

But striker Marcus Bent will be included in the squad after signing on loan from Birmingham.

Martyn Waghorn is looking forward to starting afresh with Leicester after claiming he wasn’t given a chance at boyhood club Sunderland.

The 20-year-old striker joined the Foxes in a £3million deal on transfer deadline day last week, returning to the club where he finished as 12-goal top scorer at the end of a season-long loan spell last term which saw the Championship side reach the play-off semi-finals.

Waghorn was keen to put that first-team experience to good use when he returned to Wearside, but instead the arrivals of Danny Welbeck and Asamoah Gyan have seen him slip further down the pecking order than ever.

And that meant he jumped at the chance to rejoin Leicester, this time on a permanent basis.

“It wasn’t that much of a wrench having to leave,” the South Shields-born frontman told the Newcastle Evening Chronicle. “It was just sad they didn’t give me a chance and I didn’t get a fair crack of the whip.

“It was sad to be leaving after 13 years at the club but it has happened and I have to move on now. That’s football.

“I am at Leicester now and I’m there for the next four years, so hopefully I can do a job for the club. Steve Bruce called me and told me what was going on so it was nice to get that phone call.

“It is nice to have heard that the fans cared – it is a shame I didn’t get to show them an awful lot.”

Mick McCarthy never lost faith in Wolves striker Sylvan Ebanks-Blake, who has already equalled his goal tally for last season by netting twice in two games.

In Wolves’ first season back in the Barclays Premier League, Ebanks-Blake struggled to make an impression but the 24-year-old looked sharp in pre-season and followed up his goal at Everton by opening the scoring in Saturday’s 1-1 draw with Newcastle at Molineux.

The result saw Wolves maintain their unbeaten start to the season, having gained five points from the opening three games.

McCarthy said: “Sylvan earned the right to be in the team and sealed that with a fabulous finish and another really good performance against Newcastle.

“It just didn’t happen for him last season and it didn’t happen for a lot of the lads early on – and then others got to grips with it quicker.

“Kevin Doyle was also playing so well up front so Sylvan didn’t get as many games as he would have wanted.

“He wasn’t as battle-hardened and sharp as he needed and wanted to be.

“This year he has had a great pre-season. He came back really hungry for it and he is a better player for it. He is working exceptionally hard.

“People questioned his ability to play at this level. I wasn’t one of them.”

Sylvan Ebanks-Blake can be backed at 151.00 to finish as the leading goalscorer in the Barclays Premier League this season.

The match saw 12 players handed yellow cards in what was a combative encounter between the two sides.

McCarthy said: “I’m glad we got everyone off the pitch without anyone getting sent off.

“But I’m pleased we competed in a real tough game.

“There were times when we may have lost that game last year when we were trying to chase games, being desperate to get a winner.

“If you’ve got your point, sometimes take and settle for the point and remember Newcastle are not a bad team.

“They’ve got a lot of Premier League quality in their team.”

McCarthy was disappointed that his side were not awarded a penalty early in the second half as James Perch brought down Matt Jarvis with the score at 1-0.

He said: “I wasn’t certain at the time. I didn’t know if the ref thought ‘Jarvo’ had fallen over his legs.

“But I’ve just seen it again and it was a poor, poor decision.

“We are 1-0 up and, if we score the penalty, the game is done and dusted for us. It was a real pivotal moment in the game.”

Andy Carroll’s textbook header from a Joey Barton free-kick earned Newcastle a share of the spoils after Ebanks-Blake’s clinical finish broke the deadlock. Ebanks-Blake also hit the post while Newcastle were guilty of missing several goalscoring opportunites with Carroll and Nolan failing to take advantage.

Wolves are currently on offer at 5.50 to be relegated this season.

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Newcastle manager Chris Hughton has managed to sign Hatem Ben Arfa on a season-long loan to strengthen his squad.

Ben Arfa has finally signed for Hughton after weeks of speculation about the future of the Marseille player and Hughton trying hard to make the deal happen. Ben Arfa is Hughton’s fifth signing of the summer for Newcastle.

Ben Arfa, who has had disciplinary problems in the past with Marseille, travelled to Tyneside earlier this month in an attempt to clinch a move, but returned to France with the clubs unable to agree terms.

It was always my first choice to come here and I’m delighted to be here.

Hatem Ben Arfa

He finally got his wish just one day after Ivory Coast international Cheik Tiote joined Newcastle, and Ben Arfa could face Blackpool in the club’s next league game.

Ben Arfa said: “It was always my first choice to come here and I’m delighted to be here.

“I have paid real attention to the history of the club and the great players to have played for it, and particularly the supporters, and I want to showcase my skills in Newcastle.

“All I’m waiting for is to show what I can do in front of the public in Newcastle.

“A lot of my friends in France already know the fans’ reputation. The stadium has an ambience that is unique and I feel very lucky to have his opportunity.”

Newcastle manager Chris Hughton was delighted to have managed to sign Ben Arfa, stressing that the negotiations to get him were very complex, but he was happy to now have got his man after a long chase.

Hughton said: “Hatem is a player who we have been tracking for a long time, and what is important is that he is not only a young player who should continue to improve, but somebody who already has a great reputation in the game.

“We think he will add flair to the squad and we are confident he will fit in well with the team that we have put together here.

“He will, I am sure, prove to be a great addition.”

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James Milner expects a tough game at the Stadium of Light on Sunday as big spending Manchester City travel to Sunderland.

The former Aston Villa midfielder enjoyed a memorable debut on Monday as his new team secured a comfortable 3-0 victory over Liverpool.

The north-east is always a tough place to go and they create a great atmosphere.

James Milner

Full Time Result betting for tomorrow’s clash has Sunderland at 4.50, with Man City 1.83 and the draw 3.50.

Milner played for Newcastle earlier in his career, and he believes that City will be in for a different kind of challenge when they travel to Wearside.

He said: “Steve Bruce always has his teams settled very well. He is a good manager and they had good spells last season.

“The north-east is always a tough place to go and they create a great atmosphere. It is a very good place to play football.

“It is up to us to get on top of them early in the game because if they start well and get a goal in front with the crowd behind them it can be tough.

“Hopefully we can get out of the blocks quickly, put in a good performance and get the right result.”

Milner can be backed at 3.40 to score at any time during the match with Sunderland.

City manager Roberto Mancini is pleased with the way his expensively-assembled side is developing, and he wants them to be easy on the eye.

He said: “It is important we play football – no long balls but on the floor, shifting the ball quickly. The players I have brought in need to fit the style I want to bring here.

“I have followed all the players I bought many times and know they all have good mentality.

“If we think that because we beat Liverpool that Sunderland will be easy, it would be a big mistake.

“In the Premier League every game is difficult. If you don’t play Liverpool, Manchester United or Chelsea, it is even more difficult, for me.”

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