. You half expect WWE wrestlers to emerge from the tunnel, not a football team, but on this night Wolves lived up to the bombast and delivered a full metal racket of a performance to take a desperately needed three points.
A crashing drive from Jean Ricner-Bellegarde after a sweeping move across the field looked to have been enough to decide this game, only for Matheus Cunha to make it safe for Vitor Pereira’s side with a fabulous solo goal in added time. He twisted he turned, he held the ball up, then the Brazilian finally fired across Emiliano Martínez inside the far post, inspiring excelsis in the Jack Hayward stand.
For Villa this was an unwelcome continuation of their stuttering league form, and with Ollie Watkins amongst four players to be withdrawn at half-time, the message seemed to be that this was one high intensity fixture too far for Unai Emery’s men.
Wolves should have had the three points wrapped up, stamped first class and sent to Premier League HQ way before the half-time whistle was blown. They were sharper, more determined and for a side that had lost their past four matches it was striking how slick they were too.
The only goal to show for their play came in the 12th minute and it was a beauty. Building on the left-hand side the ball was worked to Cunha about 25 yards out. The Brazilian, always with one eye on an opportunity, slipped the ball to Gonçalo Guedes who quickly bounced it back to Pablo Sarabia who was standing centrally on the tip of the D.
The Spaniard looked up, saw Bellegarde bombing on down the right and slipped a pass inside Lucas Digne to the Frenchman. Bellegarde was challenged as he went for the ball and could have more easily slipped a pass across the box and back to Guedes. But instead, he chose to shoot, and the ball …
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