Yerson Mosquera got on the scoresheet for Wolves as a side consisting of largely under-21s fell to a narrow loss to Villarreal B in a behind closed doors training match, which brought an end to the Alicante training camp.
Ahead of flying back to the UK, the match of two 35-minute halves provided another beneficial workout for many of the players who were brought on late in the victory over Besiktas the previous evening, with Mosquera’s header being the difference at half-time.
But with Villarreal changing their entire 11 for the second period, while Bruno Lage gave his whole starting line-up a full run 70-minute run out, the fresh legs told after the break, as the Segunda Division side capitalised on Wolves’ tiredness to claim the win.
Wolves began the contest in the midday summer Spanish sun in sharp fashion. Dexter Lembikisa had an opportunity to open the scoring early on, but his effort on goal was pushed behind by Villarreal goalkeeper Iker Alvarez.
The wing-back was pressing high up the field and forced Villarreal into a mistake as he nipped the ball back and helped create another chance for those in the grey training kit, but Mosquera could only head wide from a Hugo Bueno corner.
The two combined once again from a set-piece delivery, and although Mosquera once again met Bueno’s ball into the box with his head and guided in on target, Alvarez was there to make the save.
The first sight of goal from the yellow shirts of Villarreal came just after the water break after Mosquera had conceded a free-kick on the edge of the box. But fortunately for Wolves, Jimmy Storer – the under-18 keeper coming into net for the senior side – was able to tip Tasende’s curling effort over the crossbar.
Despite being a defender, Mosquera was in the thick of the attacking action for Wolves during the first-half, and it was the Colombian who put his side ahead on 24 minutes. Another set-piece, this time a free-kick close to the sideline, was whipped into the box by Connor Ronan and met by the centre-back’s head as he steamed into the six-yard box, giving Alvarez no chance.
Just before the stroke of half-time, Wolves were put under pressure after a slip-up in defence, but Storer came to the rescue, closing down Juan Carlos Arana, and nicking the ball off the Villarreal forward, although the Spaniards were calling for a penalty against the keeper, but the referee waved away their appeals.
Half-time | Wolves 1-0 Villarreal B
After switching to a back four at the break, which saw Bueno moving into a front three, Lembikisa switching to left-back and Mosquera pushing wider on the right, Wolves were fortunate not to have fallen behind in the early stages of the second half when Nikita Iosifov’s cross into the box found an unmarked Diego Collado, but the striker could only fire the ball over the crossbar from 12 yards out.
Moments later, Collado was picked out in space over the back of the Wolves defence, and although Storer made a clever stop to deny the forward one-on-one, Mosquera was penalised for pulling back the Villarreal man just as he was about to shoot, with the referee pointing to the spot. Up stepped Javier Ontiveros from 12 yards and he turned the ball into the back of the net off the left upright.
Wolves were beginning to tire around the hour mark due to the hot conditions out in Benidorm, but there was still goalmouth action at both ends of the pitch, firstly Conor Coady made a great block at one end to deny Villarreal a second, before Theo Corbeanu could – and possibly should – have put his side back in front at the other.
Bueno looked to have lost the ball on the left, but the determination of the Spaniard was for all to see as he won back possession on the byline before cutting inside past several yellow shirts and getting a shot away at goal which was spilled by Villarreal’s second-half keeper Filip Jorgensen, but the ball fell to Corbeanu, just yards out from goal, and somehow the Canadian turned the ball over the crossbar.
Wolves were left to rue that chance, as Villarreal got the winning effort just two minutes from time. Iosifov had the ball laid on a plate across goal from Collado and the Russian found space in between Coady and Boly to slot the ball into the back of the net from close-range.
Full-time | Wolves 1-2 Villarreal B
Wolves | Storer, Lembikisa, Mosquera, Coady, Boly, Bueno, Griffiths, Ronan, Hodge, Cundle, Corbeanu.
Villarreal B first-half | Alvarez, Leal, Tasende, Rodrigo, Arana, Gelardo, Ojeda, Espigares, Haissem, Iniguez, Geralnik.
Villarreal B second-half | Jorgensen, Ruiz, del Moral, Ontiveros, Carlo, Perez, Romero, Galdon, Iosifov, Collado, Abraham.
