Burnley and Wolves played out a draw that somehow managed to be both painfully predictable and completely exhausting. For Wolves, there were at least a couple of moments that felt like small victories in a miserable campaign, even if the afternoon ultimately ended with more frustration than satisfaction. So after a season of utter misery, for the final time in the Premier League, here are our two good and two bad from Wolves’ 1-1 draw with Burnley.
Good
1 – We actually got a penalty… and scored it
When Wolves were awarded a penalty, though a VAR decision no less, there was probably a collective sense of disbelief among the fans. Considering nearly every 50/50 decision has felt like it will go against us for the longest time, finally seeing the referee point to the spot for Wanderers felt rarer than a clean sheet. Even better, Adam Armstrong calmly converted the penalty to give Wolves the lead and, briefly, some control over the game. After spending months on the wrong end of officiating luck, it was nice to see Lady Luck accidentally remember we exist for once.
2 – We were briefly 19th
Dream big. Aim high. And for a short, glorious spell, Wolves climbed off the bottom of the table into the dizzying heights of 19th. You could almost hear the open-top bus being prepared. It did not last long, obviously, because nothing fun is allowed to last when you support Wolves, but in that fleeting moment, there was at least the tiniest sense of avoiding complete humiliation. Progress comes in many forms. Sometimes it is Europe. Sometimes it is not being 20th for 20 minutes.
Bad
1 – Couldn’t hold the lead
Embed from Getty Images
Naturally, Wolves could not just make life easy. Taking the lead was one thing, but seeing the game out was another entirely. Burnley equalised in the 48th minute after Flemming exchanged passes with Ugochukwu on the edge of the area before drilling a precise effort beyond Sá and into the bottom-right corner. The familiar feeling returned immediately, that sinking inevitability that once Wolves go ahead, there is always chaos lurking around the corner. The inability to manage matches properly has haunted this side all season, and it showed again today. Instead of building on the advantage, Wolves drifted, invited pressure, and paid for it. If anything, it took some smart saves from Sá to stop the scoreline from getting embarrassing.
2 – SEVENTEEN minutes of added time felt like a hate crime
Football has officially lost its mind with stoppage time. Seventeen added minutes across the match felt less like officiating and more like psychological warfare. Every time the fourth official lifted the board, it felt like another personal attack on anyone emotionally invested in this football club. By the closing stages, it no longer resembled a normal match; it was an endurance test. At this point, Wolves supporters deserve compensation packages for emotional damage caused by the added time alone. Nobody in the history of the Human race has ever thought of Wolves vs Burley and thought, “Yeah, I’ll have some more of that”.
In the end, it was another afternoon that perfectly summed up Wolves’ season with some flashes of encouragement mixed with the familiar frustration of missed opportunities. A rare penalty, a brief escape from the foot of the table, and moments of attacking quality from Mateus Mané offered positives to cling to. Still, the inability to hold onto the lead left fans wondering what might have been yet again. Throw in a marathon amount of added time that tested everyone’s patience, and this was a game that felt exhausting in every possible way.
