Wolverhampton Wanderers snatched a late point on their return to the Premier League against ten-man Everton at Molineux on Saturday afternoon.
Nuno Espirito Santo’s men twice battled back from behind as a late header from Raul Jiménez secured a point. Everton’s £40m man Richarlison had given the Toffees the perfect start in the 17th minute before Phil Jagielka was shown red. Ruben Neves equalised with a peach of a free kick before half-time as Wolves took advantage.
Richarlison was at the forefront again mid-way through the second-half as a sumptuous solo goal edged the visitors in front again. Jiménez popped up in the 80th minute, however, to secure a draw for the hosts.
Richarlison the instant Everton hero
Both sides enjoyed a lively start a Molineux but the first chance came the way of Marco Silva’s men. Seamus Coleman did excellently to skip by Jonny following a quick interchange with Theo Walcott. The defender’s shot was straight at Rui Patrício though.
Toffees’ debutant, Richarlison, was a constant threat throughout the afternoon and soon had his name written all over the game. Silva’s men were awarded a free-kick with Baines whipping the ball into the Wolves’ penalty area. Nobody could get a telling connection until it fell to Richarlison, who stabbed home from only yards out.
Wolves finally grow
It took the hosts some time to really threaten the Everton goal, with Jiménez proving particularly tricky. The Mexican did well to get past Morgan Schneiderlin before smashing his shot into the side-netting. Helder Costa then tried his luck from distance but only managed to find the gloves of Jordan Pickford.
Nuno Espirito Santo’s men were then given a significant boost when Phil Jagielka received his marching orders. He attempted to collect a simple pass from Michael Keane but miscontrolled the ball. Diogo Jota looked to be pouncing on it before being scythed down by a crunching challenge from the defender. Craig Pawson had no reservations as he showed the red card.
Neves takes advantage
It did not take long for the Championship winners to take advantage of their man advantage. From a free-kick just outside of the area, Neves curled an excellent strike into the top corner to draw the home side level.
Silva attempted to rectify matters just before the break as he took Gylfi Sigurðsson off for Mason Holgate.
Ten-man Everton edge ahead
Despite their obvious disadvantage, Everton continued to push for a winning goal and it nearly came from Cenk Tosun. The striker manufactured space on the edge of the area but his powerful shot could only find the arms of Patricio. Jordan Pickford also had to be at his best to keep Jiménez’s effort from hitting the back of the net as he ran free.
The Toffees continued to create chances mid-way through the second-half. Walcott should have done better as he latched onto Richarlison’s knock-down but could not sort out his feet quick enough to get a shot off towards goal.
They eventually did score again and it was that man Richarlison. The Brazilian received the ball on the edge of the penalty area on the left. He then curled the ball around Conor Coady and into the bottom corner.
Jimenez heads home a late equaliser
Wolves were not done there though. Jimenez had an acrobatic effort deflected away by Michael Keane as the hosts hunted for an equaliser.
The on-loan Benfica striker was to find the net though. Ruben Neves was again gifted too much time to produce a teasing cross into the box that was headed into the bottom corner by Jimenez to level matters and eventually earn the newly-promoted team a point on their return to the Premier League.
Final Thoughts
A strange evening for both teams in which each manager could be pleased. Wolves will be delighted to have claimed a pointed after being behind, whilst Everton managed to hold on with ten-men. However, with the Toffees having claimed the lead, they will be frustrated with how close they were to victory.
In all however, a solid point for both. Wolves can now look forward to their match with Leicester City next weekend, whilst Everton will do battle with Southampton.
Match Report
Wolverhampton Wanderers: Patrício (7); Bennett (6), Coady (5), Boly (6); Doherty (6), Moutinho (6) (Gibbs-White (N/A), 85′), Neves (8), Castro (6) (Vinagre (N/A), 76′); Hélder Costa (6) (Bonatini (5), 71′), Jiménez (7), Jota (6).
Everton: Pickford (6); Baines (6), Keane (5), Jagielka (4), Coleman (6); Schneiderlin (6), Gueye (7), Richarlison (8) (Digne (N/A), 86′), Sigurðsson (6) (Holgate (7), 43′), Walcott (6); Tosun (5) (Niasse (N/A), 81′).
Goals: Richarlison (17′, 67′), Neves (44′), Jiménez (80′)
Referee: Craig Pawson
Yellow Cards: Richarlison (14′)
Red Cards: Jagielka (40′)
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