LIAM BERRY SHARES HIS THOUGHTS ON WOLVES PERFORMANCE AGAINST BRIGHTON AND GIVES HIS PLAYER RATINGS
Wolves dismantled by De Zerbi’s ecstatic Brighton side.
Gary O’Neil made one change from the side that impressed against Manchester United at Old Trafford, bringing in Fabio Silva for Pablo Sarabia.
Brighton beat Premier League newcomers Luton 4-1 a week prior, and made three changes ahead of the trip to Molineux. Joao Pedro, Mahmoud Dahoud and Jan Hecke made way for Julio Enciso, Billy Gilmour and Adam Webster.
Let’s look at how Wolves side played and rank each of their performances.
JOSE SA - 5
The shot-stopper had a miserable afternoon, but despite the scoreline, it wasn’t all down to the Portuguese international. Wolves’ defence was in complete disarray and Sa fell victim. Not an afternoon to remember for him but not much he could have done for all four goals. Didn’t have a great day with his distribution.
NELSON SEMEDO - 4
Semedo must have had nightmares about Kaoru Mitoma from the same fixture last season, and there may be more now. Tough afternoon for the full-back, and just didn’t turn up today. Mitoma yet again ran riot, and Semedo just didn’t show enough desire to keep up with him, hence why he is given a four. A shame after such a promising display at Old Trafford.
CRAIG DAWSON - 3
Dawson had one of his worst performances in a Wolves shirt. Surprisingly so after making such a fantastic impact so far. Brighton highlighted his weakness in mobility and used it to their advantage. It felt at times like a knife through butter. Clear that Wolves need another centre half that can cope with pace, as Dawson is always going to struggle with that in a four.
MAX KILMAN - 3
Gareth Southgate was in attendance for the game today, so Kilman had his perfect chance to showcase his talent. Unfortunately, he did the opposite for the first goal, leaving a huge gap for Mitoma to run into. His leadership was in question too, as that ten minute period at the start of the second half needed a leader to boost morale. Bad day for the captain.
RAYAN AIT-NOURI - 5
The Algerian had an average day in the office today. Didn’t do anything particularly brilliant but also didn’t do as badly as others, which automatically moves him up the pecking order. Did squander a couple of decent chances, the first of which was more important than the second, by which time the game had gone.
MARIO LEMINA - 4
Lemina has been linked with a move away in the past few days, but if any clubs watch that game they will have seen that his technical ability isn’t the best. You can feel sympathy as at times he looked like the only man in midfield. Slightly below par day for him given his previous high standards.
JOAO GOMES - 5
The youngster had an average performance. He played incredibly well against United, unfortunately he didn’t replicate this but it wasn’t a terrible display. Showed his huge frustration after being substituted and will want to do better.
MATHEUS NUNES - 4
Nunes never really got going in the way that he can, apart from a few promising runs from deep. However, this was all undone by one moment of madness at the end, getting a second yellow after pushing a couple of Brighton players in the final minutes. His first yellow as also daft given the referee had told him to put the ball down. Poor from him and puts us at a disadvantage going to Goodison Park next weekend.
MATHEUS CUNHA - 7
By far our best player on the pitch, his exhilarating runs were on full display. If there’s one saving grace from this afternoon then it would be Cunha. Has started the season really impressively.
PEDRO NETO - 6
The young winger impressed against United, and you can still see the intensity and pace he brings. However, I think he should be used on the left instead of the right. We saw it in the 2020/21 season where he was mainly on the left, and he was far more dangerous on that side.
FABIO SILVA - 4
Fans have been crying out for Silva to lead the line for Wolves, and they got their wish. However, the youngster didn’t have his best game. He missed a huge chance in the first half, whilst giving the ball away cheaply on a few occasions. Hopefully he will improve in the games to come. Wolves certainly need him to find his scoring touch.
SUBS
Hwang Hee Chan – 7
Pablo Sarabia – 5
Toti Gomes – 5
Hugo Bueno – 4
ARTICLE BY LIAM BERRY
I am a life long Wolves fan that is passionate for the club. I am a sixth form student who loves writing about things I love!