Everton verdict

[AndyY]

As good a Wolves first half as I have seen in a long time and we could have had several more goals if it wasn’t for Pickford and (a correct) VAR. We were a delight to watch. That said, we also gave them two clear cut chances from sloppy play - we do need to concentrate 100%
Second half was bit more nervy as Everton finally came to the party after half time ear pounding, and I was a bit worried they would get a second goal, we did defend well but I would have just liked us to defend a bit higher. I would have also liked us to have brought Traore on with about 20 to go to scare their defence witless and relieve pressure on ourselves.
RAN, Semedo and Trincao had their best games for Wolves so far. Neves had his best game for a long time, Hwan was excellent in the first half, both attacking and tracking back like a terrier, and Raul is the best all round striker in the PL. We now have a front two (Raul and Hwang) as good as Raul and Jota and that helps us play more on the front foot and press higher up the pitch.
Need to play like that first half in every match and not like we played against Leeds.

 

[jonesy]

Trincao needs a goal the boy clearly is a wonderful player that needs a bit more confidence

 

[JohnMatrix]

Trincao needs a goal the boy clearly is a wonderful player that needs a bit more confidence

Completely agree, such a shame when he missed that chance. He was 1 of a few people who really seemed to up their game last night.

 

[Wolf316]

Must admit, Trincao doesn’t cut it for me .

Pathetic in challenges and misses as many chances as traore does - without getting the same criticism. Lovely build up play but pointless if you miss from 6 yards

Thought he was very good first half but still lightweight and gets knocked off the ball too easily.

 

[JadeWolf]

My morning after verdict!

I thought we deserved to win. We made it a bit more tense and nervy than it probably needed to be at the end, think is was a mix of tiredness and just Everton being a bit more positive, but you can’t knock how we played for the first half and for parts of the second half.

First half was probably our best 45 minutes of league football in a long time. We were positive, exciting and really fun to watch. Should we have scored more than 2? Yeah I reckon so, and that’s maybe something to work on, if we’d have been 4 or 5 up at half time I don’t think it would have flattered us.

Second half we were a bit sloppy at times and we gave Everton a hand to get back into it. Don’t get me wrong we probably should have killed the game off with the chances we had second half too, and I do think a third finishes them off.

I thought Neves was an absolute dead cert man of the match, he was brilliant. Ait Nouri had a fab game down the left side too. Even though Marcal hasn’t done much wrong I’d like to think it’s Ryan’s shirt to lose now. Trincao had a good game and well in to Bruno for picking him.


So, things for Bruno to work on definitely but there’s also things to be really positive about. The results and the league table show it’s been a good start, I said decent the other day but i think it’s better than that. For now I’m happy to keep going under the radar and just doing our thing quietly. Bring on Palace!

Emoji Ratings:
(Won’t let me add the emojis in so I’ll do the list!)

Neves
Kilman, Ait-Nouri, Jimenez
Trincao, Semedo, Moutinho, Hwang
Coady, Saiss, Sa

 

[Munich_Wolf]

38 matches unbeaten when we've gone into half time with a lead apparently. Unbelievable stat.

 

[Oh When the Wolves]

The main thing for me is the balance with ait nouri . Cannot believe it has taken an injury to marcal to see this.

 

[Oh When the Wolves]

38 matches unbeaten when we've gone into half time with a lead apparently. Unbelievable stat.

Not when the majority of those are probably in the champ against the likes of Barnsley

 

[Daveywolf]

The 3 teams who beat us at the beginning of the season aren't looking so great now, good work Bruno and team

 

[Keyser Soze]

I agree with all of that. I think Podence was the wrong sub to make, he doesn’t naturally close down/ fight for the ball. He wants to play and conceded possession in some poor areas towards the end of the game. For me the sub to make would have been Traore. Something tells me Traore will start against Palace.

RAN was incredible tonight as was Neves, his undoubted talent couple with his desire and commitment is a joy to behold. The way he takes the ball down and dictates play is great to see. Fabian Delph, to be fair, made a big difference to Everton when he came on.

One other thing…. Iwobe is utter horse****, you know it, I know it, everyone knows it..so how come he always scores against us?

The Iwobe factor is one of life’s great mysteries I’m afraid, I don’t think any of us will ever be able to make sense of it

Richarlison didn’t score at least though, but at least he’s a half decent player

 

[Flaneur]

Frankly, if hes a 32m player to make him permanent I wouldnt be paying it on the performances so far.

Good thing it’s only a £25m option then.

Think we just need to give him some time to adapt, talent is there to see for me and he’s still only young. Give Bruno and the team some more time to work with him and he’ll turn out just fine imo.

 

[Stafford]

Regarding Trincao, i get why people are disappointed with him.

But...

We can't deny Wolves are a far better & balanced team with him in it.

Even last night when he came off the balance up top disappeared.

There is a huge difference in how we press and the chances we create in the 5 games he has started.

 

[Mile End Wanderer]

Let’s call them out . @Mile End Wanderer ssid he was finished .

Embarrassing

Looked it!! Nice one for calling me out though, my reverse psychology normally works.

 

[steve vena]

Regarding Trincao, i get why people are disappointed with him.

But...

We can't deny Wolves are a far better & balanced team with him in it.

Even last night when he came off the balance up top disappeared.

There is a huge difference in how we press and the chances we create in the 5 games he has started.

I think he's a good player...lovely touch and glides around the pitch. He's not very strong though but hopefully he'll bulk up a bit.
The team is more balanced with him in it. I think he'd make a good number 10.
Raul was magnificent last night by the way.

 

[Wenlock Wolf]

Bruno talks about players who play inside and outside. The insiders (as I see it) being Trincao & Hwang, the outsiders therefore Traore & Podence. He seems to change according to the opposition formation & personnel.

Overall I do think we look a more coherent unit with T&H. Maybe it's not as eye catching as a wonder burst down the wing & cross but at times we have looked disjointed and Jimenez isolated. Last night it all linked up brilliantly, so allowed us to advance more as a group in to the opponents box.

I love Adama, but his poor assist & goals ratios are concerning. Dribbles doth butter no parsnips!!

 

[cannockwolves]

First half was some of the best Premier league football I have seen wolves play. They really was champions league standard at times, like you see the top four play. But we could not sustain it for an whole game. Second half was like a mid table battle which we lost 1-0 in effect.

I think Lage got the subs wrong. He should have swapped Trincao for Adama to press them back. Semedo was getting loads of space, Adama would have frightened the life out of them.

Still we hung in and got the win.

Palace away is tough but I can see us getting something. Win that and get to 19 points from just 11 games suggests we are probably going to avoid relegation (I have honestly been worried this season).

 

[Mile End Wanderer]

Was surprised to see Trincao start but that was probably his best game for us.

Thought we was very dominating in the first half. Some of the best play all season Kilman & Moutinho brilliant! The possession game we was having really took it out of Everton they got more and more frustrated.

Coady looked rocky they did target him. Once the second half started you could see we was getting penned back and our midfield was weak. Everton then scored and we looked a bag of nerves only Jose Sa helping us to win the points.

We was more than the better team but the confidence just left us, that has to change. We should of really killed this game off with a few more goals.

Take the win, and onward to our visit of Crystal Palace who will also be in high spirits.

 

[Pintandkebab]

Hwang for me has made the difference up top . As we don't just rely on Jiminez now .

As Hwang wants to get in positions to score where as Traore , Trincao sit wide most of the time and leaving just one possible option in the box.

 

[Corporate Wolf]

Bruno talks about players who play inside and outside. The insiders (as I see it) being Trincao & Hwang, the outsiders therefore Traore & Podence. He seems to change according to the opposition formation & personnel.

Overall I do think we look a more coherent unit with T&H. Maybe it's not as eye catching as a wonder burst down the wing & cross but at times we have looked disjointed and Jimenez isolated. Last night it all linked up brilliantly, so allowed us to advance more as a group in to the opponents box.

I love Adama, but his poor assist & goals ratios are concerning. Dribbles doth butter no parsnips!!

I suspect one of two things or a combination of both.....

1. Bruno feels exactly the same thing as you and that he feels Traore unbalances the side
2. He is being used sparingly because he is being sold in Jan to generate funds for new purchases.

 

[Stafford]

I think he's a good player...lovely touch and glides around the pitch. He's not very strong though but hopefully he'll bulk up a bit.
The team is more balanced with him in it. I think he'd make a good number 10.
Raul was magnificent last night by the way.

Raul is the difference from us just being another lower mid Prem side. Club Legend.

Those passes down the middle into his feet last night with him laying it off brought so much Dynamism to our game, it looked easy.

 

[GoldenHorseshoe]

38 matches unbeaten when we've gone into half time with a lead apparently. Unbelievable stat.

Wow, considering that we hardly ever have a half time lead, you must have dug through some dusty archives to retrieve that!

 

[1972 i began]

Sa - 7 - Mistake aside, good saves and command
Saiss - 8 - Excellent all night for me.
Coady - 7 - Solid.
Kilman - 7 - As above.
Ait Nouri - 8 - Best game in a Wolves shirt for me
Semedo - 7 - Solid.
Neves - 8 - A very very good midfielder.
Moutinho - 7 - see above.
Hwang - 7 - Industrious. Will improve final product.
Trincao - ? - I’ve no idea if he’s brilliant or hopeless.
Jiminez - 8 - Won everything in the air and the finish was a stunner.

Podence - 6 - Not for me.
Dendoncker + Fabio - N/A

Everton first half - 1
Everton second half - 6

Bruno - 8.

Delph - 11 - The Messiah, apparently.
Gordon - 5 - probably just a scouser as opposed to the genius they all think he is.

Agree with most.But I'm baffled about the Trincao comment.He was great first half and he was the same as every other player in the second.Is it because he's missed 2 sitters.?.Give the lad time to settle in please.

 

[Flump]

Agree with most.But I'm baffled about the Trincao comment.He was great first half and he was the same as every other player in the second.Is it because he's missed 2 sitters.?.Give the lad time to settle in please.

Most people could do their player ratings based on just looking up who won and who scored.

Wolves win - 7 for everyone, 8 for anyone who scored.
Wolves lose - 6 for everyone, 7 for anyone who scored, 1-5 for anyone who made a mistake that cost a goal/missed a sitter.

 

[wolvesaywe]

38 matches unbeaten when we've gone into half time with a lead apparently. Unbelievable stat.

Which stretches back to 1932

 

[dewolfman]

Conpletely dominated the game, don’t understand the reports of how we let them back in it, ok they had a bit of a patch around 80 mins but not much else. It’s a premier league game the other side are expected to have a few chances too.

 

[WolfLing]

First half good, 2nd half dismal. He is very lazy as well. Semedo did brilliantly with very little support at times. Wonder if his fitness is an issue, he has faded massively in every game thus far

Yeah, when he starts he seems to hit a wall at about 60 mins. He had a ten minute spell before he was hooked off where he couldn't find a Wolves shirt at all, a lot of that probably down to tiredness of body and mind.

 

[Bondi Wolf]

Most people could do their player ratings based on just looking up who won and who scored.

Wolves win - 7 for everyone, 8 for anyone who scored.
Wolves lose - 6 for everyone, 7 for anyone who scored, 1-5 for anyone who made a mistake that cost a goal/missed a sitter.

That's from the Garth Crooks analysis for team of the week.

Defender or midfielder that scores = in the team
Forward that scores/assists more than once = in the team

 

[Derbywolf85]

Thought last night's performance was excellent for the most part - The game should've been out of sight before they scored and then Trincao (who is brilliant and utterly infuriating at the same time) should've made it a no contest shortly after they scored.

Raul was back at his imperious best. Hwang is an absolute MUST sign as soon as is Earthly possible. Neves ran the show, his best performance this season. Kilman has become Mr Consistent now he's getting a run in the side and his goal topped it all off. Semedo was very good going both ways. Jose Sa was again great when called upon (aside from his one moment of madness).

My MOTM though, and as long as he stays fit is clearly the man for the role going forward - Rayan Ait Nouri. That was the kind of performance that shows all the lyrical that was being waxed about him before he signed last summer wasn't just hype. The lad has IT.

Hopefully, now with some good points on the board, we can start being a bit more forward thinking (like we were last night) more often and less pragmatic - I have no doubt that's why Bruno applied the brakes on BrunoBall a little bit, but last night it was back and that first 35 minutes was an absolute pleasure.

Long may it all continue!

 

[marrs-guitar]

38 matches unbeaten when we've gone into half time with a lead apparently. Unbelievable stat.

I heard that, but can't really be true, can it? There was a certain game against a certain team just last January where we led 2-1 at the break and lost 2-3.

I think the stat should have been 28 games, not 38, and last night's result made it 29.

Of those 29 games, we only actually led 3 at the break: vs that certain team in the away fixture (but ended 1-1), Leeds last week (also ended 1-1) and last night vs Everton (finally winning at HT and FT!).

Last night was the first PL game we had led at both HT and FT since the win at Arsenal and the awful Jimenez injury. To see the last time we actually won both halves of a football game, you have to go right back to the end of the 2019-20 season and the final PL home game vs Crystal Palace (where we won both halves 1-0).

 

[Fenrir_]

Delighted with that, first half was our best for a very long time. RAN was superb and my MoTM but some good performances throughout the team.

Have to say I’ll go against the grain and say I thought Atkinson had a good game. Not booking Holgate was odd but seemed most 50/50s went our way, and the match flowed well overall.

I also thought Atkinson had a good game. Missed a couple that I think were fouls (for both sides) but was really consistent in not giving free kicks for minimal contact, which was refreshing to see

 

[Munich_Wolf]

Wow, considering that we hardly ever have a half time lead, you must have dug through some dusty archives to retrieve that!

No chance.....it was the German comms who mentioned it.

 

[thommo1984]

Agree that Ruben was Man of the Match last night, had a real swagger about him...BUT we really need to start fining him for not passing through the lines when the chance is on!

There were a number of times last night where he saw it, took a second, then turned and played the safe pass wide - and then got shouted at by Raul/Trincs. When you've got Max doing little tricks and threading a pass through the eye of the needle into the forwards then the CMs really need to start stepping up, it would make a huge difference to how dangerous we can be. Even Mouts did it a few times last night!

Other than that he was excellent.

 

[ToastedWanderer]

Was a fun game last night, warts and all, would have been topped by the Jimenez header sneaking in instead of hitting the post or if Trincoa had taken his chance, but will take the W all day long.

I've always said in the technical era you need to score at least twice nowadays to beat VAR and your opponent. One thing Bruno has re-instilled into Wolves is an ability to score goals, even if we're having an off day and its translating into points. Just a different outlook going into a game thinking we're likely to score, which certainly wasn't the case 6 months ago.

If Trincoa, Traore and Semedo could start slotting away their chances, we'd be looking at a top class team..

 

[Tring Wolf]

I’d 100% sign Trincao if the fee is anywhere near €25m. Think people forget just how young he is. Once he develops a bit more physically and gets used to the pace of the Premier League, he could be top class.

As much as I like him, the one who I think may struggle for game time is Podence.

 

[Bankswolf The Third]

Few things, firstly one of the best refereeing performances in a long time, some good challenges going in that were waved on and made the game much more enjoyable
Secondly I haven't read the comments but I imagine it echoes what I thought, first hour we were terrific, Raul, Neves, Kilman, Ait Nouri and Semedo all superb, Trincao grew into it
Clearly there is work to be done with fitness levels because like Leeds last week we just seem to drop off completely and play so deep. That mixed in with Bruno and his hesitation to make subs is making life hard work. Another premier side would have taken that Everton team to the cleaners and I did feel with the introduction of Delph they made a tactical change we could not deal with and that bothers me
What doesn't bother me is the league table. I feel outsiders have all waited for us to struggle to cast doubt on Bruno, our players and us as a whole and considering we are on level points with the media darlings Brighton and their lord and saviour Potter I cant complain too much

 

[Mugwump]

I’d 100% sign Trincao if the fee is anywhere near €25m. Think people forget just how young he is. Once he develops a bit more physically and gets used to the pace of the Premier League, he could be top class.

As much as I like him, the one who I think may struggle for game time is Podence.

I think Adama and Podence could struggle once Neto is back.

 

[Wagstaffe Was Magic]

Why the rope-a-dope for a lot of the second half??
It was Newcastle all over again. We hand the initiative to the inferior team, and sit back.

We’ve got away with it in those two games, we didn’t at Leeds.

First 30 mins were spectacular!

Rayan Ait-Nouri ….. wow, just wow!!

 

[Gold Flag Flying High]

It was a good night, I wasn’t expecting us to be that good and free flowing first half but I’m glad I was there to see it, every player had their own little moment it was brilliant to watch, I didn’t think we had that in us at the moment but was really pleased to be proven wrong.

second half was a bit nervy, I’m guessing Bruno instructed us to absorb attacks and try and get them on the break but It seemed like we were inviting too much trouble because even in this poor form Everton are still dangerous, after Everton scored we broke up play better and didn’t sink back as much like we did with Leeds.

We managed to push back and get a couple of golden chances in the second half with Raul hitting the post and trincao somehow hitting wide from what seemed about 5 yards out, I hope trincao gets a goal soon he deserves one for sure, Sa left my heart in my mouth with his shenanigans but recovered well thankfully.

I say again That first half had some sublime moments but I think our Fitness needs improvement, we don’t look strong in the latter stages of games But it’s a great 3 points to get especially before our dreaded December fixture list. UTW.

 

[Mile End Wanderer]

I’d 100% sign Trincao if the fee is anywhere near €25m. Think people forget just how young he is. Once he develops a bit more physically and gets used to the pace of the Premier League, he could be top class.

As much as I like him, the one who I think may struggle for game time is Podence.

Adama will be sold I reckon

 

[Thank you Sir Jack]

Good review with an extra point for including the word cack, takes me back to Wolvo in the 1970. Do people still use it?

It can make excellent bricks if dried in the sun