Wolves 2 (Strand Larsen 67, Gomes 72) Crystal Palace 2 (Chalobah 60, Guehi 77)
Wolves made it two draws on the bounce after a frenetic 17-minute spell in the second half saw four goals scored to ensure the points were shared with Crystal Palace under the lights at Molineux.
After a goalless first half, the game burst into life on the hour mark when Trevoh Chalobah benefited from indecision from a free kick to put Palace 1-0 up. But Wolves equalised within seven minutes through a tidy finish from Jorgen Strand Larsen after good work from Matheus Cunha.
Wolves then took the lead just five minutes later after some neat one-touch play around the box saw Goncalo Guedes lay the ball into the path of Joao Gomes to slot home. But the scoring wasn’t finished there and Palace levelled on 77 minutes from another set piece when Marc Guehi found himself unmarked on a corner and finished at the back post.
With Wolves and Palace both looking to get their Premier League campaigns properly up and running there was little to separate the sides in a fairly even but open first half.
Early pressure from Wolves failed to offer any clear chances, while in their defensive third, Craig Dawson put in an important block on a shot from Will Hughes before the follow-up from Daichi Kamada was easily collected from Jose Sa.
Rayan Ait Nouri made a lot of the early running for Wolves, with Tommy Doyle slipping him in, but the full-back’s right-footed effort was a tame one. It was the Algerian who was waiting on the edge of the box from a corner kick moments later, but he fired over the bar.
Santiago Bueno had a strong start at the back, coming out decisively to break up Palace’s attacks and it was the Argentinian who turned defence into attack, but Matheus Cunha’s ball into the box was just ahead of Pablo Sarabia.
Jean-Philippe Mateta proved to be a handful, muscling his way through the midfield to pick out Eddie Nketiah, but the striker failed to make Sa work. The Frenchman was also at the heart of the action, when a Palace corner routine fell at his feet, but his shot was deflected off Chalobah and out of danger.
Nelson Semedo, deputising as captain, grew into the game as the half developed, first picking out Cunha on the left, whose pass split the Palace defence but just evaded Strand Larsen. The Portuguese then found Gomes free in the middle of the pitch. The Brazilian played in his compatriot Cunha, but his effort proved to be neither a shot nor a cross.
Mateta was once again powering his way to goal and pushing the Wolves defence back, but when the ball was played out wide, Daniel Munoz headed just over from the cross.
Wolves ended the half looking the more likely to make the breakthrough. A strong run out from Toti saw the defender play out to Cunha. His sublime pass fell invitingly into Pablo Sarabia in the box, but the Spaniard decided to let the ball run across his body and Dean Henderson made a vital save to close out the half goalless.
Half-time | Wolves 0 Crystal Palace 0
Just as the first half ended with a big chance for Sarabia, so the second half began. Strand Larsen passed to Cunha, who burst forward and played a perfect pass out to Sarabia, but Henderson was out quick and smothered the Spaniard’s shot.
Dawson demonstrated his typically calm presence at the back, allowing Wolves to step out, with Semedo offering a willing runner down the right, while Ait Nouri was pushing forward too but proved indecisive in the final third in a promising Wolves break.
Despite Wolves’ positive start to the half, it was Crystal Palace who broke the deadlock. Kamada played a short free kick to Hughes, who lifted the ball in from the left. As Sa came out to claim, Strand Larsen got to the ball first and his header fell to Chalobah at the back post who fired home.
It could have been two for Palace shortly after with a break down the left, but Eddie Nketiah’s deflected pass into the box was fired over by Ismaila Sarr. The Senegalese had another glorious chance moments later when Semedo’s misplaced pass fell into his path, but the forward bent his shot wide of the post.
Wolves heads didn’t drop and they had themselves back in the game within seven minutes. The impressive Bueno once more intercepted at the back before playing a rangy pass out to Cunha. The Brazilian shrugged off his defender and picked out Strand Larsen in the middle, with the striker showing good composure to slot past Henderson.
And five minutes later things got even better when Wolves took the lead. Substitute Mario Lemina turned smartly in his own half to open up the pitch and find Cunha with his pass. The number 10 drove forward and passed to Guedes on the edge of the box, who calmly found Gomes and the Brazilian finished tidily low in the corner.
The frenetic nature of the second half continued, with Palace getting back on level terms five minutes later. Kamada’s corner was headed on by Munoz and the Palace captain was unmarked at the back post to slot home.
A scrappy final fifteen minutes saw the action continue from end to end, with Semedo first positioning himself smartly as the last defender in a dangerous Palace break to snuff out the danger, while up the other end substitute Jean-Ricner Bellegarde played into the feet of Strand Larsen in the box. The Norwegian held the ball up well before teeing up Guedes, but the shot didn’t trouble Henderson.
As Wolves looked for the winner, Palace broke down the left, but Lemina was in the middle to block Mateta’s ball. Sa came to collect but Munoz slotted the ball home, before VAR quickly adjudged that the ball had been kicked out of Sa’s hands and the game ended in a draw.
Full-time | Wolves 2 Crystal Palace 2
Wolves | Sa, Semedo, Bueno, Dawson, Toti (Bellegarde 61), Ait-Nouri, J. Gomes, Doyle (Lemina 61), Sarabia (Guedes 61), Cunha, Strand Larsen.
Unused subs | Bentley, Doherty, Pond, Andre, R. Gomes, Forbs.
Crystal Palace | Henderson, Munoz, Chalobah, Lacroix, Guehi, Mitchell, Hughes (Doucoure 79), Kamada, Sarr (Schlupp 89), Mateta, Nketiah (Clyne 83).
Unused subs | Turner, Matthews, Umeh, Devenny, Kporha, Agbinone.
