Adama Traore was magnificent for a Wolverhampton Wanderers side who came from two goals down to beat Manchester City 3-2. City endured a tough evening and had to play just under 80 minutes with ten men. Goalkeeper Ederson saw red for bringing down Diogo Jota as he ran through on goal just 12 minutes in. Despite that, the visitors still managed to take lead after 25 minutes. Raheem Sterling scored a penalty rebound after Rui Patricio saved his spot-kick. The England star then put his side 2-0 up in the 50th minute, five minutes before Traore halved the deficit. Traore then set up Raul Jimenez to draw Wolves level in the 82nd minute. Wing-back Matt Doherty capped off a great comeback by netting the winner with one minute remaining.
Adama Traore Turns the Game Around for Wolverhampton Wanderers
Ederson’s Red Card Changes Everything
Before this game, many would have expected Manchester City to dominate possession and for Wolves try and hit them on the break. But after 12 minutes, Ederson was sent off for taking out Diogo Jota who was running onto a lofted through ball from Conor Coady. This changed the entire complexion of the match, and Wolves restricted City to just 38% possession. That’s the lowest amount any Pep Guardiola team has ever registered. Instead, it was the Blues who had to play on the back foot. They reacted by taking off Sergio Aguero, who was making his return to the City side after an injury.
Sterling was left to play as a lone striker, as Guardiola’s men lined up in a 4-4-1 system. This meant Kevin De Bruyne was forced to play in a more conventional central midfield role, which stopped him from getting the freedom to drift into the right channel and deliver those killer crosses that he’s become famous for.
Despite that, the away side managed to keep Wolves at arm’s length in the first half. They held a 1-0 lead at the interval after Raheem Sterling scored from the rebound of a retaken penalty.
Wolves Upped the Ante Whilst Guardiola Made Mistakes
Guardiola made two key tactical decisions which played a part in City’s collapse. He sacrificed Riyad Mahrez for young defender Eric Garcia, and the Blues changed to a 5-3-1 system. Presumably, this was to make sure City’s centre-halves weren’t outnumbered by the front three of Traore, Jota and Raul Jimenez. It would also allow left-back Benjamin Mendy to push out wide, and limit the threat posed by Traore in the outside right channel. However, this meant that City got overrun in midfield, and their midfield three of De Bruyne, Rodri and Bernardo Silva couldn’t get a foothold in the game like they managed to do in the first period.
More importantly, the Spaniard substituted Kevin De Bruyne in the 67th minute with Sunday’s clash against Sheffield United in mind. But this had a negative impact on City’s performance, as they missed the Belgian’s quality and composure on the ball. It also weakened the visitor’s threat on the counter-attack against a Wolves side who would leave gaps as they pushed men forward.
It may be easy to say after the event, but the Champions did invite a lot of pressure onto themselves.
Terrific Adama Traore
But make no mistake, Wolves were magnificent from the 55th minute. Adama Traore’s thunderous strike brought them back into the game, and from then they never looked back. Molineux was rocking, and Wolves really started to press City with intensity. Moutinho and Neves controlled the midfield, and Nuno Espirito Santo’s men brought Traore into the game more and more. He hit a brace in Wolves’ 2-0 win at the Etihad in October, and he proved his worth again by setting up the equaliser in his team’s latest triumph.
Showing his brute physicality, he out strengthed a hesitant Mendy to win possession back, before finding Jimenez inside the box who converted from close range. It was a battle the Spaniard won emphatically all throughout the second half,
Wolves Edge Towards Top Four, City’s Title Challenge is Over
Very few people thought Wolves could replicate their seventh-placed finish last term. But so far they look like they have a chance of improving on it. They’ve now risen to fifth in the table, just two points behind a faltering Chelsea side in fourth. On current performances they have a good chance of finishing in the top four; never mind the top seven. Of course, the main concern for Espirito Santo will be their ability to sustain these results whilst playing in the Europa League. His small squad have already played a staggering 33 games this season.
Meanwhile, City have no realistic chance of defending their title. They’re already 14 points behind an invincible-looking Liverpool side who have a game in hand.
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