Wolves 2 (Munetsi 29, Arokodare 87) Everton 0
Wolves progressed through to the fourth round of the Carabao Cup, impressively seeing off Everton at Molineux thanks to goals from Marshall Munetsi and Tolu Arokodare.
The Old Gold responded perfectly to the weekend’s defeat to Leeds United, as Munetsi’s first-half strike set them on their way to a victory which will hopefully provide much needed momentum for the Premier League.
Arokodare’s first for the club then put the victory beyond doubt in the dying moments, earning Wolves both their second win and first clean sheet of the season.
Vitor Pereira made nine changes to his side from the weekend, including a switch to a four-man defence, and Wolves started the better of the two sides, settling into their new-look shape with a promising spell of possession.
The Toffees did, however, carve out the first noteworthy opportunity of the contest. Carlos Alcaraz broke the lines into the final third and threaded a pass into Tyler Dibling’s stride, and the winger shifted the ball onto his right foot but blazed his effort wide and over the upright.
Moments later, Sam Johnstone was to thank for preventing his side from falling behind. Jake O’Brien’s looping long throw was met by Michael Keane’s glancing header, but Johnstone excellently denied the effort with an outstretched glove.
Wolves, however, wrestled back momentum in the game and put themselves ahead on 29 minutes. Ladislav Krejci directed a ball for Jhon Arias to run onto, and although the Colombian made contact and inadvertently set himself for a volley, it was well saved by Mark Travers, before the rebound fell to Munetsi who calmly finished.
The home side could have pulled ahead further on two occasions before the break. First, Jorgen Strand Larsen switched the play to Hee Chan Hwang on the left edge of the penalty area, and the South Korean gained a yard on his marker, but fired a deflected effort into the side netting.
Not long after, Strand Larsen had a chance of his own when he met Jean-Ricner Bellegarde’s clever through ball, but his flicked effort found neither the net nor the supporting Munetsi.
Half-time | Wolves 1-0 Everton
Both sides emerged from the break showing intent, with each blazing strikes over the bar within the first five minutes of the restart. James Garner first skied over following a corner, before Andre mirrored him with a skewed long-range effort.
Wolves showed their defensive solidarity and continued to restrict their opponents as the half wore on. Acknowledging the frustration, David Moyes rang the changes, replacing his entire front four within the opening 15 minutes of the second half.
Everton’s growing presence in the Wolves half almost paid off, as Garner had two chances in three minutes to equalise. He first crashed a free-kick from an acute angle against the crossbar, before forcing Johnstone into a smart save down to his left with a testing effort from the edge of the box.
The home side were content to manage the game at their own tempo, while replenishing with substitutes and switching to a back five to see out the contest.
With only three minutes left on the clock two of those substitutes combined to put progression in the cup beyond doubt. Joao Gomes slipped Arokodare through on goal, and the summer signing produced an expert finish, lifting his effort over Travers to find the net for the first time in Old Gold.
Stoppage time expired and Wolves confirmed their spot in the fourth round of the Carabao Cup, ahead of a trip to London on the weekend to take on Tottenham Hotspur.
Full-time | Wolves 2-0 Everton
Wolves | Johnstone, H Bueno, Doherty, Krejci, S Bueno, Bellegarde, Munetsi (J Gomes 81), Andre (Agbadou 87), Hwang (R Gomes 68), Arias (Toti 81), Strand Larsen (Arokodare 68).
Unused subs | Bentley, Wolfe, Hoever, Lopez.
Everton | Travers, Coleman (Mykolenko 78), Keane, Tarkowski, O’Brien, Garner, Iroegbunam, Dibling (Ndiaye 58), Alcaraz (Dewsbury-Hall 45), McNeil (Grealish 59), Barry (Beto 45).
Unused subs | King, Patterson, Gueye, Aznou.
By Callum Greybanks
