Man City 3 (Simpson-Pusey 52, Adam 90+1, Warhurst 90+4) Wolves 3 (Chirewa 11, 30 pen, Whittingham 71)
Wolves under-21s let slip a two-goal lead as Manchester City netted twice in stoppage time to salvage a 3-3 draw on Sunday afternoon.
The Old Gold were twice two goals to the good in the Premier League 2 encounter as Tawanda Chirewa (2) and Matty Whittingham scored either side of Jahmai Simpson-Pusey’s goal for the hosts.
However, despite looking to be cruising to three points, the visitors conceded two after the 90 and were forced to settle for a point at the Academy Stadium.
Wolves took the lead after just 11 minutes, and it was Chirewa who opened the scoring in style. As Harvey Griffiths made strides into the box, the ball was cleared but only to Chirewa who took it down on his chest before taking the ball round a City man and firing a left-footed effort into the top corner.
A stunning opener from Tawanda Chirewa 🔥#PL2 pic.twitter.com/wWFzcI9EPJ
— Wolves Academy (@WolvesAcademy) February 11, 2024
Both sides struck the post in the opening 45, as Matt Warhurst was unfortunate for the hosts while Leon Chiwome hit the woodwork for Wolves.
And James Collins’ side were then given the opportunity to double their advantage from the penalty spot. After Justin Hubner’s solo run ended in a trip in the area, Chirewa stepped up from 12 yards and dispatched his spot-kick into the bottom left corner on the half-hour mark.
Half-time | Man City 0-2 Wolves
City halved the deficit seven minutes into the second period, catching Wolves off-guard as Jacob Wright’s corner was headed home by Simpson-Pusey after the defender rose highest in the box.
After hitting the post in the first half, Chiwome was denied by the woodwork once again in the second. Marvin Kaleta ventured forward after being played in behind down the right-hand side by substitute Josh Esen before crossing low. Chiwome took a first touch in the area before unleashing an effort from close range that rattled back off the crossbar.
At the other end, Jimmy Storer made an important save to preserve the lead for Wolves as he got down low to push away Kian Breckin’s shot after the substitute had got on the end of Joel Ndala’s cross.
That save proved vital as the Old Gold restored their two-goal advantage with little under 20 minutes remaining, and it was the former City man Whittingham who was on target. Again, Kaleta was advanced up the pitch and after receiving the ball from Chirewa, he played in a low ball from the right and to the feet of Whittingham who did the rest, taking a couple of touches before stroking into the net from around 10 yards out.
Matty Whittingham makes it three! 🙌#PL2 pic.twitter.com/BsRtg9KjbK
— Wolves Academy (@WolvesAcademy) February 11, 2024
If Wolves thought they were home and hosed, they had another thing coming as the home side weren’t in the mood for going down without a fight. Josh Adam pulled one back in the first minute of added time, placing the ball into the net from a Breckin cut-back. And in the 94th minute, Warhurst thumped home after Tom Galvez’s initial shot to deny Wolves all three points on the road.
Full-time | Man City 3-3 Wolves
COMING UP
Wolves under-21s host West Bromwich Albion in a Black Country derby at the New Bucks Head next Monday.
NEXT FIVE
- 19/02 West Brom (H)
- 26/02 Crystal Palace (A) PLIC
- 04/03 Newcastle United (H)
- 11/03 Derby (A)
- 15/03 Everton (A)
TEAMS
Man City | Grant, Samuel (Adam 66), Simpson-Pusey, Susoho, Galvez, Wright, Hamilton, O’Reilly (Breckin 46), Warhurst, Taylor, Ndala.
Subs not used | Lawrence, Tibidi, Whatmuff.
Wolves | Storer, Kaleta, Hubner, Griffiths (Tipton 84), Mabete (Ojinnaka 86), Pond, Lopes (Esen 60), Whittingham, Chiwome (Holman 84), Chirewa (Barnett 72), Keto-Diyawa.
