Soccer

Wolves make light work of dismal Norwich

Nuno Espírito Santo’s had it quite easy in a convincing win

Diogo Jota scores the opening goal for Wolves in their Premier League game against Norwich City at Molineux. Photograph: Geoff Caddick/AFP via Getty Images

Paul MacInnes at Molineux
Sun Feb 23 2020 - 16:34

Wolves 3 Norwich City 0

This was far too easy for Wolves, so easy in fact that it somewhat beggared belief. Nuno Espírito Santo’s squad have been playing twice a week for as long as Boris Johnson has been prime minister. Someone should be buying them a break in Mustique by now, but still they plow on and had too much strength, too much pace (never mind technique and guile), for a Norwich City side so desperate for points at the bottom of the division.

Two goals for Diogo Jota, following a Europa league hat-trick in midweek, were complemented by a second half effort from Raúl Jiménez, his 12th league goal of a sparkling campaign. But it could and should have been more, perhaps many more, and the gulf between the two teams on the day – only a week after Norwich held their own against champions-elect Liverpool – was as great as you are likely to see this season.

The hosts were fresh from a 4-0 mauling of Espanyol on Thursday night, in all senses of the phrase. It shouldn’t be that way: most teams – and those more celebrated than Wolves – have struggled with the Europa League calendar. But Wolves have not only avoided mid-season burnout, they’ve grown into the gruelling demands. Ten of the 11 who beat the Spaniards started again against Norwich, some of these players effectively starting a second season of matches. Conor Coady, for example, was making his 43rd appearance of the campaign, Raúl Jiménez and Leander Dendoncker their 42nd.

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It took the hosts quarter of an hour to shake off any cobwebs. During this time Norwich might have scored had they shown a greater clarity of purpose, or greater intent. But, no matter. Wolves began to find their bite, led by the irrepressible Jota who was full of energy having been given a whole seven minutes of rest against Espanyol. The Portuguese forward offered a permanent option in behind the Norwich defence, but his opening goal in the 19th minute was the work of a poacher.

The move began on the right hand side with Matt Doherty beginning an exchange of passes that ended up with Dendoncker on the right. The Belgian bent a low cross into the box which was not cut out by any of the visitors in red and yellow (an unholy combination of colours) and Doherty got involved again, rolling past his marker and poking the ball to Jota. The No 18 rolled again, past Max Aarons, before driving a low shot through the full back and the legs of Tim Krul.

Eleven minutes later and Wolves doubled their lead from a corner. It was taken short on the left hand side, back to Jonny whose cross was looped into the box. Dendoncker got underneath it, flicked it to the back post and Romain Saïss. The enormous defender kept his poise to return the ball back across goal where Jota waiting to tap home. He was one of three Wolves players unmarked at the near post only seconds after a set piece.

That was the game right there and, were it not for the keeping of Krul, Norwich would have been further down by half-time, the Dutchman doing superbly to save two separate Rúben Neves free kicks. In the end it required five minutes of the second half for Wolves to hit their third, a counter-attack straight across the open spaces of Norwich’s outclassed rearguard. Jiménez led it off, outmuscling and outsprinting Jamal Lewis before teeing up his strike partner. Jota looked set for his second treble in four days only to see a blistering shot come back off the post. Raul, as he was always going to, followed up in case of such an eventuality and slammed the rebound in the roof of the net.

Jota was taken off on the hour to spare his legs, not that he looked like he needed it. Raul followed with 20 minutes remaining, to be replaced by the one man rested after Espanyol and the last sight needed by Norwich’s sore eyes, Adama Traoré. The braided sensation barely touched the ball, but by that point he didn’t need to. – Guardian