Following a thrilling game which was very much a story of two halves, Wolves can feel nothing but disappointment after coming away from the bank of the River Mersey with only a point against 9-man Everton.
A first half dominated by Everton in the final third was epitomised by Michael Keane’s unstoppable finish from a scrappy set piece. However, with Andre replacing Jhon Arias in the Wolves midfield at halftime, giving it some much needed balance after its struggles in the first half, the tide began to sway in favour of the Old Gold. Mateus Mane scored his second in two matches with a calm and collected finish one-on-one with England’s Jordan Pickford, demonstrating why he has become a fan favourite in recent weeks. What followed Mane’s finish can only be described as Evertonian self-destruction, as both Keane and Jack Grealish were sent off within 6 minutes of each other. Unfortunately, the Toffees were able to hang onto a point as the 9 minutes of added time were not enough for a Wanderers winner.
With that in mind, here are my player ratings.
Jose Sa – 6/10
Despite facing the brunt of Everton’s attacks in the first half, Sa was rarely challenged and wasn’t forced into many saves of any difficulty: Keane’s strike was completely unstoppable, and the woodwork saved Sa from yet another Keane effort that was almost impossible to save.
Jackson Tchatchoua – 4/10
This man angers me. I thought that, maybe, after finally taking a player on against West Ham, we would see a change of confidence in Tchatchoua, especially against the 9 men. But no, Jackson chose the safe option every single time. A new right back must be imminent this window, regardless of the fact that we face relegation: my sanity cannot handle watching his unenthusiasm going forward.
Yerson Mosquera – 6.5/10
Defensively, a decent performance from the Colombian. He didn’t have the opportunity to make many of the underlapping runs like he did against United and West Ham, which was quite disappointing, but understandable. However, his theatrics, going to ground after the slightest of touches, are starting to get on my nerves. For this, I have deducted him half a point from what I would’ve rated his performance.
Santiago Bueno – 6/10
Again, Santi didn’t really put a foot wrong defensively. His lack of pace was concerning when he was left one-on-one with Thierno Barry, but thankfully this didn’t come into fruition.
Ladislav Krejci – 6/10
A few sloppy passes come to mind, but this can be forgiven with the wars that Krejci went through, resulting in his substitution mid-way through the second half. Hopefully he hasn’t suffered any injuries as our options at the back are limited amidst the absence of Agbadou and Toti.
Hugo Bueno – 8.5/10
An immense performance from the Spaniard, pumping in multiple threatening crosses and coming close with a weak foot effort deep into added time. If only we could clone Hugo and have a right-footed version to replace Jackson.
Jhon Arias – 4.5/10
Unfortunately, the game wasn’t right for the Arias/Gomes midfield combo. Arias was miles off the pace of the game, giving away cheap fouls and misplacing most of his passes, and rightly hooked at half time.
Joao Gomes – 8/10
As per Arias, Gomes struggled in the first half. However, he found his feet and dominated the midfield in the second half with the introduction of Andre.
Mateus Mane – 9/10
Another thrilling performance from Mane, driving at defenders and getting another well-deserved goal. As per usual, he worked hard to try and win the ball back after he lost it, helping out defensively on both sides. An all-round great performance from the 18-year-old, which is becoming a bit of a reoccurrence since he was brought into the team.
Hwang Hee-Chan – 5/10
Back to his old self, I’m afraid. Sloppy passes all around and didn’t offer much going forward.
Tolu Arokodare – 7.5/10
Yet another excellent performance from Tolu. He did well to win a few headers against the ruthless Everton defence and held the ball up well. As to the surprise of no one, he played even better when partnered with Strand Larsen, although anyone would if they were partnered with Hwang for most of the game. He also brought Everton down to 10 men purely by having long hair, which is quite funny.
Substitutes:
Andre – 7.5/10
As I mentioned earlier, Andre brought the much needed stability to the midfield. He allowed us to dominate, controlling the tempo and finally allowing us to string more than 2 passes together. Although the Gomes/Arias midfield has worked over the past few games, I think that we may need to alternate this pairing with the typical Gomes/Andre duo in the games against the most physical sides.
Jorgen Strand Larsen – 7.5/10
It’s amazing what happens when you actually look interested in playing. Strand Larsen gave the assist for Mane’s goal with a beautifully weighted pass, prying the Toffee’s defence open. If that is to be his last act for the club, then he’s signed off on a positive note after a horrific start to the season.
Pedro Lima – N/A
I can’t wait for Saturday’s FA Cup matchup against Shrewsbury: surely Lima will be starting. I hope that he can prove himself to be better than Jackson so that we don’t have to watch him anymore.
