ZENGA BRINGS ZING TO MOLINEUX
NEWCASTLE: WOLVES’ new boss Walter Zenga earned his first win in the Championship with an impressive victory at Molineux.
Left-back Matt Doherty made the breakthrough in the 42nd minute and Joe Mason sealed the victory two minutes into the second half.
Zenga said: “The team played very well and there was no doubt about the final result.
“I think if we could have scored more goals it would have been nice.”
Wolves dominated from the opening whistle while Reading struggled to make any kind of impact of their own as new boss Jaap Stam experienced his first defeat in the role.
A lacklustre display by Stam’s side was summed up by the fact they could only muster one shot on target when John Swift tried his luck from long range in the 50th minute. HUDDERSFIELD: Wolves, who drew 2-2 at Rotherham last weekend in Zenga’s first match at the helm, almost took an early lead when Wales international Dave Edwards won the ball in midfield and released Joao Teixeira. He picked out Mason whose shot from 12 yards was well blocked by Reading keeper Ali Al Habsi.
Wolves were dominating with Mason and especially the lively Teixeira dangerous down the flanks.
The hosts were almost gifted a goal by the keeper in the 41st minute when his pass was intercepted by Teixeira, who rolled the ball into the path of George Saville, who was denied by a stunning one-handed save from Al Habsi.
But Wolves only had to wait another 60 seconds to score when Teixeira fed Doherty and the Irish defender cut in from the left and let fly from 12 yards with an unstoppable shot.
Wolves quickly made the game safe at the start of the second period with Mason, unmarked on the edge of the six-yard box, powering home a close-range header from Saville’s right-wing corner.
Stam said: “In these games you need to be very sharp and focused. Wolves were really up for it at the beginning of the game.”