Wolves enjoyed a mud bath at Blundell Park in their 1-0 victory away to Grimsby in the FA Cup Fourth Round, tasting a first away win in 301 days. The condition of the pitch certainly made the tie more equal, as Wolves spent the first half trying to adapt to the prehistoric style of football necessary to stand a chance against the hosts, who were certainly more familiar with such conditions. Joao Gomes’ free kick was the only highlight, which struck the crossbar.
The second half saw Wolves have much more opportunities, as the Grimsby backline became littered with mistakes. Santiago Bueno kneed in at the hour mark in the classic scrappy fashion, followed by shots from Armstrong and Tolu that narrowly flew over the crossbar. Grimsby attempted a comeback towards the end, but their efforts were ultimately futile as they failed to challenge Johnstone.
With that in mind, here are my player ratings.
Sam Johnstone: 6/10
On a grim day in the pink goalkeeper shirt, Johnstone spent most of his time impersonating a pig, as he was rarely tested by the Grimsby attack. Nonetheless, I’m sure a clean sheet will give him some confidence, although Sa will surely take his place against Arsenal.
Jackson Tchatchoua: 6/10
He adapted to the conditions relatively quickly and found some joy in the wide areas, finally utilising his pace against the lower quality of opposition. A great performance by his standards, but okay by everyone else’s.
Yerson Mosquera: 7/10
As expected, Mosquera was the one getting stuck in the most and flourished in the conditions, finding some joy higher up the pitch as well.
Santiago Bueno: 9/10
A brilliant performance by Santi, scoring the only goal and denying Grimsby a leveller just before the final whistle. He’s deserved to get the Man of the Match award for some time now and today was finally his day.
Ladislav Krejci: 6.5/10
He was the first to adapt to the conditions, with plenty of no-nonsense defending on display in the first half. A solid performance from Krejci.
David Moller Wolfe: 6.5/10
Another player with a solid performance, giving plenty of offensive support down the left flank whilst doing his defensive job well.
Andre: 7.5/10
For the first time in what feels like forever, the Brazilian midfield duo finally dominated the midfield. Andre was everywhere today and controlled the game well.
Joao Gomes: 8/10
His performance was similar to Andre’s, but he gets a slightly higher rating for that fabulous free kick that deserved a goal but instead struck the crossbar.
Mateus Mane: 6/10
It seems like Rob Edwards is trying to kill Mane, as he has played 90 minutes for 6 games in succession now. He needs a rest. He did well in the second half; it took him a while to adapt to the conditions in the first.
Adam Armstrong: 6/10
He made plenty of runs through the channels which our players finally managed to find a pass for, giving Grimsby a lot to think about. However, he missed an easy opportunity, so he won’t be getting higher than a 6 unfortunately.
Tolu Arokodare: 6/10
He found it difficult, as expected, to hold the ball up against the big Grimsby centre backs. However, as time went on, he got better and better at it and acted as a key asset in a game where playing on the floor was basically impossible. He snatched at a few opportunities, but we know that Tolu needs more chances to score more goals, so I have no issues with his performance.
Subs:
Jean-Ricner Bellegarde: N/A
