No. 217: Battle for the top spot (Part I)!
Wolves' hierarchy have taken the UEFA Cup more seriously than the Championship to some extent, because European opportunities are hard to come by for a team like Wolves.
The draw was not very good, Shakhtar Donetsk are a Ukrainian powerhouse, and several Brazilian players in the team are of good quality, and some believe that the Ukrainian team can at least reach the last four.
The first round of the UEFA Cup knockout rounds will begin on 19 February, with Wolves playing six Championship games before that, and in preparation for the first leg of the UEFA Cup, Wolves will certainly be in the hunt for the sixth game.
Ince's plan to steal points in December failed because of two consecutive defeats, so after the war resumed, he never put forward any so-called plans again, and he didn't want to add psychological burden to the players.
On 10 January, the Championship was back in flames, with Wolves rushing headlong into the Championship. Their leading position is precarious, just two points ahead of second-placed Sheffield United.
With such a point difference, it can be reversed in one game.
On the 9th, the Wolves went to Bristol City, and at 3 pm on the 10th, the game officially started. Wang Rui and Peter have just recovered from injury and have not been included in the starting lineup, coupled with the injuries of other players, Wolves are almost half of the main team.
Bristol City saw hope of a win over Wolves and launched a tidal wave of attacks amid the roars of the home fans. Ince commanded Wolves to reclaim the defence and consolidate the defence.
Bristol City's attack was met with stubborn resistance from Wolves, and Bristol City had to adjust their tempo. Seeing that the time was ripe, Ince waved his hand, and the wolves rushed out!
The scene is very similar to last year's Carabao Cup final, after a wave of attacks, Wolves suddenly erupted, not giving the opponent a chance to adjust, thus disrupting the opponent's rhythm.
Not to be outdone, Bristol City staged a battle against each other!
After a battle, the fate of Wolves was very different from last year's Carabao Cup final, with Bristol City scoring two goals and Wolves scoring nothing, and Wolves were 2-0 down at half-time.
With two goals ahead, Bristol City saw a chance to beat the Championship leaders and continued their battle against Wolves after the start of the second half.
Seeing that he was unable to score for a long time, Ince made two substitutions in the tenth minute of the second half, replacing Wang Rui and Peter on the field.
With the arrival of the Wolves twin stars, the offensive situation of the Wolves team began to improve, and Wang Rui used threatening wonderful passes to threaten the opponent's goal again and again.
In the nineteenth minute of the second half, Wang Rui began to dribble the ball from the opponent's hinterland, broke through the opponent's three defenders in a row, and hit the penalty area. The Bristol City backline was stunned, and two central defenders stepped forward to attack!
In an instant, Peter, who was ambushed in the opponent's penalty area, was unexpectedly unguarded!
Wang Rui seized this fleeting opportunity and completed a diagonal pass that pierced the opponent's defense line with the outside of his instep!
Peter stretched out his right foot, gently stopped the football, fixed his eyes on the football, waved his left leg, and headed towards the football!
"Smack! ......" sounded, and the football crossed the goal line in an instant like a white arrow, drilling into the net!
The ball is in!
The score became 1-2 and Wolves narrowed the difference!
Peter's goal gave Wolves hope of an equaliser.
It was a typical Wolves twin goal, with Wang drawing the attention of the opposition back line and seizing the fleeting opportunity to send the ball to Peter, who was able to do it in one fell swoop.
The city of Bristol sank as they saw the terrifying power of the Wolves twins. In the ensuing game, they strengthened their defense and played defensive counter-attacks, trying to maintain a one-goal lead until the end of the game.
Wolves were attacking like a tide, but under the opposition's dense defense, they could only threaten the opponent's goal with long-range shots. As the clock ticked on, Wolves were getting closer to a three-game losing streak.
In the eighty-fifth minute of the second half, Wang Rui took the ball in the opponent's hinterland, and suddenly made a direct pass to find Peter standing on the opponent's penalty line. With his back to the opponent's goal, Peter couldn't turn around, he directly knocked back and passed the football back to Wang Rui.
There were a lot of people in the penalty area, Wang Rui didn't think too much, took a step forward, raised his right foot is a shot angrily, his purpose is very clear, that is, to win in chaos.
"Smack! ......" After a crisp sound, the football smashed into the opponent's penalty area like a cannonball. The next moment the ball hit the left leg of the opposing centre-back, and then on the right leg behind the left!
In this way, the ball weirdly bounced twice and headed towards the right side of the goal!
The opponent's goalkeeper, who was caught off guard, pounced on the football with difficulty, and the football changed direction and flew towards the goal!
This made the home fans breathe a sigh of relief, and they were about to praise their goalkeeper, but at that moment, a gray figure slid towards the football with a gray figure against the turf!
The next moment, amid the exclamations of the home team's fans, the gray figure flew into the net with the football!
The ball is in!
The score became two to two!
Wolves finally equalised with difficulty!
Wang Rui howled and rushed to Kevin Foley, who had successfully shot the shot. Since Wolves played in the Championship this season, four youngsters have made a name for themselves as "the four sharpest teeth in a wolf's mouth!" ”。
Kevin Foley's goal tally plummeted, and the famous "Wolves Trident" in League One last season was suspected of being in name only.
Kevin Foley, who had been depressed since the start of the season, was the point where his follow-up shot helped Wolves equalise and avoid a third straight defeat for Wolves.
Kevin Foley was thrilled to score a crucial goal that would certainly boost his self-confidence. Ince, who is standing in the command area, is also happy for him, and he has a special affection for the remaining "old man" of the Wolves team, who together have experienced an epic relegation battle and also experienced the glory of last season.
He certainly hopes that these players will continue to be in good form and contribute to Wolves.
Neither side was able to change the game for nearly ten minutes, and Wolves came from two goals down to equalise and avoid a three-game losing streak.
Sheffield United won 2-0 away at Watford in this round of games, and after three consecutive wins, they are level with Wolves in points, only in second place on goal difference, and Wolves' top position is really in jeopardy.
The Guardian commented: From 0-2 to 2-2, Wolves avoided three consecutive defeats, and the main contributor to this was the Wolves twins. If you have to say who has more credit, it is undoubtedly the king, and both of Wolves' goals have a relationship with him. Peter's goal came from a pass from Wang, and Kevin Foley's follow-up shot came from his powerful shot.
This once again speaks volumes about the importance of the king to Wolves, who were on the bench at the time of the two consecutive defeats because he was injured. In this game, he came off the bench with an injury and planned two goals for Wolves to help Wolves avoid three consecutive defeats!
……
The Guardian almost credited Wang Rui with all the credit for this game, and some players of the Wolves team were very angry, and Wang Rui's vision was a little unkind.
However, Wang Rui didn't pay attention to these eyes at all, nor did he explain anything, he knew that this was the Guardian who was killing him.
The Guardian's killing has not yet knocked Wang Rui down, and another effect has already come out, and the Wolves have opinions about Wang Rui, as if he deliberately robbed his teammates of the credit.
……
On January 17, in the 29th round of the Championship, Wolves took on Reading away, and the result of this game will determine whether Wolves can retain their top spot.
At four o'clock in the afternoon, the game began, and the Wolves duo finally returned to the starting line-up after three games. Although the Wolves players have opinions about Wang Rui, they still recognize his ability.
Watching the Wolves twin stars appear in the starting line-up, the Wolves players have a lot of peace of mind.
This change in psychology is intuitively reflected in the fact that Wolves are more confident during the game. This confidence slowly translates into control of the pace of the game.
Playing away from home, Wolves took control of the game and accepted it, much to the displeasure of the Reading fans, who booed their own team with a huge shout.
Kevin Foley, who scored the crucial goal in the last game, was very positive, and in the 19th minute of the first half, he almost found the Reading goal with a long-range shot from outside the box.
In the 32nd minute of the first half, Wang Rui received the cross from Bale, who came up with the assist, shook off the opponent's back, kicked the ball over the top, and passed the football into the Reading team's penalty area!
Peter yelled, took two steps forward, jumped high, and hit the goal with a fierce header!
A white light flashed and the ball passed through the Reading goalkeeper's fingertips, and the score became 1-0!
Wolves ended the first half with a 1-0 score thanks to Peter's goal. In the second half, the two sides changed sides and fought again, with Reading rushing to equalise as they pressed all over the line and Wolves took the opportunity to play a defensive counter-attack.
In the thirteenth minute of the second half, Bale dribbled the ball in the backfield, galloping, and entered the Reading half.
With the score leading and the numbers dominating, Wolves firmly grasped the initiative of the game. In the thirty-third minute of the second half, Wolves got a free kick opportunity in front, Wang Rui dropped the football into the Reading penalty area, Kentin jumped high and scored a header!
Football hits the net!
The score became 2-0!
In the end, Wolves won 2-0 away thanks to two headers. And Sheffield United, who clung to Wolves, broke out an upset, losing 0-1 at home to Doncaster, and Wolves took the opportunity to expand the points gap between the two teams to three points and continue to occupy the top spot!