Substitute Cavaleiro quick to turn tide in favour of Wolves
This was threatening to be an excruciating afternoon for Wolves, until Ivan Cavaleiro made a dream introduction to the Premier League.
Cavaleiro will never forget his first touch in the topflight, a crucial strike which enabled Wolves to maintain their upward momentum under Nuno Espirito Santo.
The Portuguese winger was a key member of Wolves’s promotion campaign but had not played this season due to a back injury. This was his debut at this level and he provided the opening goal 11 minutes from time on an afternoon where Wolves lacked bite.
Jonny Castro Otto added the second goal in the 87th minute to stretch Wolves’s unbeaten league run to five games.
It did appear for much of the afternoon that Wolves’s struggles to convert chances would dominate Nuno’s post-match inquest, until Cavaleiro’s dramatic cameo.
Nuno said: “When a player comes in he must do his task and help the team. Ivan did it well and this is the spirit we want to build.
“Wolves fans must be happy coming to Molineux and should be proud of their team. We are happy knowing it’s only the start. There’s a long way to go. Tough mo- ments will arrive and we have to be ready for it.”
Wolves are up to eighth in the table and early on it appeared as if Southampton were going to be blown away. Within the opening 15 minutes, Joao Moutinho produced two efforts from outside the area, while Southampton goalkeeper Alex McCarthy made a fine save from Jonny’s shot.
Mohamed Elyounoussi almost silenced a noisy Molineux in the 28th minute after he was sent clear by Nathan Redmond’s excellent pass but his shot was kept out by Rui Patricio.
Wolves were now struggling to function as impressively and Nuno was shifting uncomfortably in his technical area.
There was a nervy moment for Patricio in the second half when he spilt Jannik Vestergaard’s ambitious 30yard free-kick, recovering to snatch the ball as Charlie Austin prepared to pounce.
Patricio also saved Wolves 15 minutes from the end to deny substitute Stuart Armstrong from six yards.
But then came Cavaleiro’s game-changing introduction. Coming on for the tiring Diogo Jota, the winger had only been on the field two minutes before producing an emphatic finish after Raul Jimenez’s pull-back.
Jonny added the second, poking the ball under the Southampton keeper to extend the feel-good factor.
Southampton probably deserved better but they have now won only four of their last 32 league games.
Mark Hughes, their manager, said: “Frustration is the emotion we’re feeling at the moment. We came here with intent but we’re disappointed with the goals we conceded. At Premier League level, you can’t defend like that.” Newcastle are not United. They are disintegrating, hopelessly divided. A team drained of confidence playing in front of a crowd that is more concerned with displaying animosity towards an unpopular owner than supporting the team.
Leicester City will not have an easier win this season. Newcastle’s bad start has turned into a diabolical one. They finished 10th in May, but all momentum has been lost.
They overachieved last term and reality has hit them like a shovel in the face, swung at them by Mike Ashley, their owner who refused to allow Rafael Benitez to spend the money he needed in the summer.
Benitez wrung every last point out of his side last season, but deprived of proper investment, even he looks unsure what he can do to dig them out of this slump.
“We know it is going to be hard, but we kept together and we kept working hard and we finished tenth last season,” said Benitez.
Having been untouchable since he arrived in March 2016, spared any of the collective displays of dissent that normally stalk a manager, Benitez was booed here. It was brief, but loud,