That, then, is us. Enjoy the rest of the weekend, and enjoy Forest v Spurs. Cheerio!
Updated
And here’s Peter Lansley’s report.
Semedo payed really well today, but this is not a good look.
Newcastle, meanwhile, were pretty poor today – which will make the point they got all the more valuable. The sense of something’s building isn’t solely a product of quality performances, but of growing belief, the sort that comes from nabbing a largely unmerited point with a stupendous injury-time equaliser.
Bruno Lage has work to do with Wolves. In terms of general play, they’re doing alright, but they’ve got to find a way of scoring more and that probably means (Jorge Mendes) finding (them) a reliable goalscorer this week. Cristiano Ronaldo doesn’t have much going on…
Relief for Moyes, grief for Gerrard.
Allan Saint-Maximin, though. What I love about that goal isn’t just the laces, but the step that preceded it – he imparted so much power, with such control. If he’d tried to knock the cover off it, he’d have got nowhere near scoring, but because he focused on the connection, slowing down on connection because the momentum from his movement onto the ball knocked the cover off it anyway.
Updated
And just finished:
Still to come this afternoon, another tasty little set-to:
Wolves remain second-bottom, a point above Leicester, who have one, level with Everton and one behind Bournemouth, West Ham and Villa; Newcastle move seventh, level with Man United and one behind Chelsea, Leeds and Spurs.
Full-time: Wolverhampton Wanderers 1-1 Newcastle United
Another jazzer of a game, two absolute jazzers for goals, and Wolves are still languishing, while Newcastle are coming.
90+10 min Schar drills the free-kick wide.
Updated
90+9 min A change apiece, Wolves doing Dendoncker for Moutinho, Newcastle Ritchie for Saint-Maximin – who’s been hobbling since his goal.
90+8 min Anderson drives at the heart of the Wolves defence, plays off Saint-Maximin … and falls over, because Kilman has deployed a judicious trip. Free-kick Newcastle, almost dead centre, inside the D and on the line. Trippier fancies a look at this one…
90+7 min Nearly! The corner gets a near-post flick, I’m not sure whether from attacker or defender, and Anderson is at the far! But he’s so close and the ball comes so far, that all he can do is flick a forehead, and the ball cracks the face of the bar!
90+7 min Wolves get the first ball away, then Jonny challenges Murphy, ceding a corner. Can Newcastle filch an unlikely winner?
90+6 min Newcastle win a free-kick just over halfway and send the centre-backs forward; Wolves’ line is higher than the sun.
90+4 min NOW HERE COMES SAINT-MAXIMIN AGAIN! Wolves forces themselves to go in search of a winner, Saint-Maximin now on the right and stretching away. But with a man in the middle, he opts to take on the shot, Semedo does brilliantly to show him outside and onto his right foot, and Sa parries the resultant shot.
90+2 min Wolves will be feeling very, very poorly. They’d done so well to see out the result – Saint-Maximin has barely had a kick second half. But he only needed one, and I can barely believe how good that goal was.
90 min There’ll be eight added minutes.
SKKGKKGGGLP WHAT A GOAL! Wolverhampton Wanderers 1-1 Newcastle United (Saint-Maximin 90)
A punt down the line from Trippier comes to nowt, Hwang taking the ball away from Murphy. But near the by-line, he finds himself stretching into a clearance that sails directly into Saint-Maximin’s path, on the edge of the box, left of centre. Still, though, there’s an unmentionable quantity of work still to be done, Saint-Maximin stepping onto a gloooorious volley that shrieks past Sa and into the far corner! That is a spectacular intervention, and not one that looked remotely likely.
Updated
89 min Newcastle have a final go at making it nice, but after the ball pops about in the Wolves box, Neves – who’s played well today, even aside from the goal – humps clear.
87 min Sa comes a long, long way to collect an aimless cross on the edge of box, hollering to ensure Semedo doesn’t intercede. Semedo has, though, been excellent today; he should tell himself this is his standard, because he can and does play a lot worse than this.
Updated
86 min It’d be an absolute sickener were Wolves to concede now. They’ve caught Newcastle on a good day – no Wilson, no Guimaraes, no Isaak – but they’ve shown really good defensive composure and counter-attacking enterprise.
84 min Two changes apiece, Wolves sending on Hwang and Podence for Neto and Guedes, Newcastle trying Murphy and Anderson for Willock and Almiron.
NO GOAL! Wolverhampton Wanderers 1-0 Newcastle United
A foul’s a foul, I guess, and VAR isn’t there to re-ref the game, just to preside over the big calls, which explains why it doesn’t matter that similar offences have gone unpunished – this one led to a goal.
82 min VAR wants a look! Neto shoved Fraser, so it’s a foul, but it feels like lots of similar challenges have gone unpunished this afternoon.
GOAL! Wolverhampton Wanderers 2-0 Newcastle United (Jimenez 81)
Again Wolves counter from a corner, Neto shoving Fraser outside his own box and screeching downfield. He’s got two men headed for the far post so delivers his cross into that area, and Jimenez slides home the clincher!
Updated
80 min Kilman finds Nunes, who stretches forward and has a man on either side! Can he feed them in! Well, yes and no: he can’t but he doesn’t, hitting a decent enough shot that’s straight at Pop while, to his right, Neto remonstrates as strongly as you’d expect someone who’s chased 50 fruitless yards to.
79 min Almiron has come into this, and when Wolves clear but only partially, Semedo has to stretch when attacked on the outside. Another corner, but Kilman deals with it well.
77 min Slowly but perceptible, Newcastle are inching up the pressure. Botman mistimes his leap when attacking a corner – that was a decent chance – but here comes another…
76 min Neves clears a cross and though Almiron collects the loose ball just outside the box, when he tries a left-footed curler, Moutinho charges and wears it on his back.
75 min Pablo Fornals has put West Ham ahead at Villa Park, scoring his side’s first league goal of the season. Steven Gerrard is in trouble.
74 min This game is disappearing. Newcastle still have a puncher’s chance of getting an equaliser, of course, but they’re not exerting any sustained pressure and Wolves are doing a really good job if keeping them away from the ball.
73 min Nunes is up again, and we’re back under way.
72 min “Feels weird seeing the manager of 11 walking, playing, Saudi Arabian flags wearing a Ukrainian heart on his lapel,” says Nelson Calvinho , and he’s right, it is – Pep Guardiola is another who’s humanitarian urge only speaks to him in certain circumstances. Truth is, those who work in football should be protected by those who run football – and by their government – but ultimately you're responsible for your own integrity.
70 min Newcastle win a corner down the right and Wolves get it away, then we see that Fraser is down – he ran into Nunes, who looks a bit groggy after wearing a head to the coupon.
69 min I wonder if, now Fraser’s on, Howe will have Joelinton attack the box. I guess with Wood gone, they’ll be be looking for cut-backs more than crosses, but the way Wolves are defending makes that look an unlikely route to a goal.
67 min I’m not sure why you’d want Saint-Maximin in the middle. He’s not a half-turn player, but needs space to isolate defenders on the wing, forcing others to shuffle across – which creates opportunities inside for his teammates.
66 min Saint-Maximin is in the middle now, with Fraser at left-wing and Targett left-back.
65 min A double change for Newcastle, but Trippier must be OK because he’s staying on. Rather, Targett and Fraser replace Burn and Wood.
63 min Neto picks up another loose ball and there’s a real composure about his and Wolves’ work in the possession now. Trippier does then win the ball, but he can only launch it, and again Newcastle are pinned back; they don’t look especially like conceding again, but they look even less like equalising.
62 min Jimenez’s corner is headed away, but again Wolves quickly retrieve possession, and though they’re eventually put under pressure in their own half, Kilman works the ball clear.
61 min Wolves are back in control, knocking the ball about midfield as Newcastle scurry, then finding a man over out wide. Semedo then plays into Jimenez who touches off around the corner for himself, beating Schar and forcing Botman to leather behind.
59 min Now it’s Neto again, working space to shoot low; Pope saves easily enough, but yerman has been the best player on the pitch by far and looks eminently capable of wreaking further havoc.
59 min Neto overruns the ball so Trippier nips in; Neto then clothelines him with an extended leg, shin across shins, and is booked.
57 min It’s all a bit scrappy now, which Wolves won’t mind at all. I wonder if we might soon see Traore and Podence for Guedes and Jimenez, because as Newcastle commit more men forward in search of an equaliser, there’ll be serious space behind their defence.
55 min Newcastle look a little better now, though Trippier might’ve done a hamstring. I’m not surprised, Neto’s had him stretching all afternoon, and I too would be keen for a little sit-down.
Updated
54 min This time it’s Wolves struggling to get the ball away and when Schar’s teed-up outside the box, Kilman extends a thigh to flick his low, measured curler behind. This time, the corner is cleared easily enough.
53 min But then Saint- Maximin slides Almiron down the left and his cross is a decent one, Collins doing really well to get in front of Wood at the front post to poke behind.
52 min If I’m Eddie Howe, I thinking about making a change here.
50 min Wood blocks Neves’ free-kick behind, and again, Newcastle clear the first ball but struggle to get rid thereafter. Eventually, though, they move play downfield – but so far, nothing much has changed from the first half.
48 min A yellow card is deemed sufficient and, on balance, I’m glad VAR isn’t sufficiently empowered to overturn the on-pitch call. But had that been a red, I’m pretty sure Schar would be in the dressing room. So, free-kick Wolves, dead centre and 25 yards out.
48 min …and I can see why! Schar was nowhere near the ball and arguably reckless – he was on the stretch so not in control, and had Neto not been so lithe, he’d be in much more pain than he is.
47 min VAR is thinking about a red card here…
46 min Schar welts a clearance into Willock and Neto collects the loose ball, skating across him; naturally, Schar applies the lunge, on the stretch with studs pointing towards shin. Neto avoids the sharpest part, skipping over the leg, and Schar is booked.
46 min We go again.
“It must be strange to be a Wolves fan,” reckons Kári Tulinius. “They got not-quite taken over, but also not quite not, by Jorge Mendes, and for a season or two it looked like they’d one-nil their way to the Champions League. Now they’re still Mendesized, but the breadth of their ambition seems a lot less expansive. I worry they’ll persist in this limbo for a couple of seasons more, then come crashing down.”
My guess is most Wolves fans are enjoying themselves. They’ve got some very good, very fun players, and plenty of room to improve from here, even if the Mendes relationship feels odd.
Elsewhere:
Half-time email: “It’s actually eight Portuguese players,” corrects Robert Hammond. “And we love them all and want more.”
Rightly so. I can’t say the shebang sits right with me, but as long as the standard of players is as it is, whatever arrangement there is works well for Wolves.
Half-time fun: a cup-tie from 1979
Elsewhere, it’s Villa 0-0 West Ham. Both sides badly need the points.
Half-time: Wolverhampton Wanderers 1-0 Newcastle United
Neves’ lush finish is the difference, but Wolves have also been the better side in general play.
45 min There’ll be one added minute.
45 min I wonder if Eddie Howe might give Ryan Fraser a shy. I know Almiron is an important part of his system, but Wood needs crosses and he’s currently getting few currently.
44 min Jonny is down, but he should be OK.
42 min Kieran Trippier has had a horrible half, terrorised by Pedro Neto. He might want to get tighter after the break, because standing off is allowing his man to the space to get moving, and one-on-one, he’s struggling. Other hand, if he can get a foot or shoulder in as the ball arrives, he might avert the danger before it’s really present.
Updated
41 min This is a good test for Newcastle now, who haven’t shown much so far. Almiron has barely had a kick, and though Saint-Maximin looks lively, because there’s not much threat down the right, Wolves have been able to crowd him out most of the time.
LOVELY GOAL! Wolverhampton Wanderers 1-0 Newcastle United (Neves 39)
Wolves do really well to work the ball patiently, finding Neto down the left. He has a look, then lays back to Neves, in space 20 yards out, and when the ball arrives, he takes a touch then lashes a gloriously pure drive through Willock’s legs – he’ll not want to see that one again – that fizzes past Pope and into the bottom left. Wolves have earned that.
Updated
38 min Pope comes for the cross, misses it, and though the immediate danger is averted, Wolves sustain the attack…
37 min Wolves win a free-kick just right of centre, 25 yards out…
Updated
35 min “I note that Wolves have seven Portuguese players in their starting lineup today,” tweets Ben Chia. “Why isn’t a bigger deal being made of the fact that this middling Midlands club have become Jorge Mendes’ plaything? It’s another form of financial doping I feel.”
I don’t think it’s financial doping, but the relationship is a little strange – though I guess it’s the game these days. Mendes has access to a rich seam of talent and Wolves are getting to mine it.
33 min Now it’s Wolves in the ascendancy, Jimenez unable to control a tricky shin-high volley following Semedo’s cross, then Neto isolating Trippier again – he’s got him on every defender’s worst carb, absolute toast – before crossing; Jimenez’s cross is blocked behind.
30 min This is a not unenjoyable game – not things we’re used to saying about those featuring either of these sides. It’s easy to laugh at “this league” and its sense of importance, never mind baulk at its moral vacuum, but the standard of play and entertainment so far this season has been great.
Updated
28 min Saint-Maxmin gets away from Semendo, who yanks him down. He’s booked, and must now last an hour without attracting further punishment; good luck with that, old mate.
Updated
26 min Massive chance for Wolves! Trippier finds himself under pressure down the left when he thought he’d have time to clear, Jimenez robbing him then curling a delectable cross to meet the arrival of Nunes! But mistiming his jump slightly, he gets under a ball he needs to be over, half-heading, half-shouldering a poor effort over the top from eight yards. That was the best chance of the game so far, and though the finish was miserable, you’ve got to applaud the timing of Nunes’ run and his desire to be the third man.
Updated
25 min Wolves, though, are a threat on the counter, Jimenez pulling wide feeding Jonny, whose cross is to no one but a tester, under the bar; Pope shovels it away well enough.
24 min That said, Semedo is defending him well so far, refusing to fall for his stepover when isolated and jockeying so that he’s forced to check, turn and send the ball backwards to no avail.
23 min If Newcastle can get Saint-Maximin on the ball, they can cause damage here; Wolves would be well advised to double-up on him, because it’s hard to see concerted danger emanating from anywhere else.
22 min Another iffy corner picks out Joelinton, arriving late at the back of the box, but he can only poke wide.
21 min Newcastle are starting to assert ringfencing the Wolves box so that when Longstaff slides a decent ball out to Almiron, it’s rolled back to Trippier whose cross yields a corner.
19 min Longstaff is putting himself about here, eager to take a chance he’ll not have expected, and after Botman wrestles Jimenez from behind, he lunges in and knees mince; Jimenez is hurt by the impact, but quickly recovers.
18 min Newcastle can’t get their passing game going here, but then Trippier lofts a decent ball over the top from left to right, Saint-Maximin worrying Semedo who’s underneath it. But just when it looks like he’s misjudged the flight, he stretches to poke behind, and the resultant corner comes to nothing.
16 min Wolves get the corner away and one pass, swept out to Guedes by Neves, turns the play. They’re looking dangerous on the counter, but this time, Longstaff tracks well to make the challenge.
15 min A loose touch from Collins allows Saint-Maxmin to rob him just outside the box, left of centre. He punches a square-ball to Wood, who might shoot but instead sets for Longstaff, and his shot is blocked behind. In co-comms, Don Goodman thinks Wood should’ve shot first time, but I don’t think his body position was right.
14 min Longstaff introduces studs to metatarsal, leaving a few on Nunes. This is a really physical game and much the better for it.
12 min Now a chance for Newcastle! The ball bounces about as Wolves can’t clear a corner, Nunes yanks Longstaff by shirt and arm – for some reason, neither ref nor VAR appraise a penalty – then the ball breaks to Willock, in space beyond the last man … but he can’t shovel it out from under his feet and get it on target, shooting a couple of yards wide.
Updated
10 min Neto is enjoying himself now, dashing down the left and standing up a cross this time … but again Pope grabs it. He’s got the legs on Burn, and Wolves need to feed him whenever they can.
9 min I’m not quite sure what happened, but Willock is hobbling about. I think he’ll run off whatever it is, and we see that as he ran backwards to make an angle for Schar as Newcastle played out from the back, he slipped.
8 min Wolves are starting to play, another nice move allowing Jonny to feed Neto outside him and down the left. But though the eventuating cross arrives into a decent near-post area, no one gambles so Pope fields easily.
7 min Chance for Wolves! Moutinho collects a loose ball just outside his own box and pretty central, leaping in a glorious inside-out pass that swerves out to Guedes on the right. His cross is a decent one too, but Neto, arriving on the scene just before Pope, has to flicks quickly before the keeper blocks, and sends a fair effort onto the roof of the net.
Updated
6 min …Nunes and Moutinho are over it, the former swinging an overhit cross directly into Pope’s gloves.
6 min Wolves win a free-kick out on the right, 25 yards from goal and a few yards in from the touchline…
5 min Joelinton’s pressure suddenly puts Wood away down the left of the box. Sa, though, rushes out to narrow the angle, diving to block an attempted cross behind. The corner comes to nowt.
4 min On Willock, we shouldn’t forget that just last week, he beat Kyle Walker in a “foot race” (as opposed to a flying race). There aren’t many who can say that.
Updated
3 min Neto looks to run at the Newcastle defence, so Willock races in and applies the shoulder, ragdolling him to the ground, then when Wolves target the channel, Botman shoves Guedes over and the ref lets it go.
2 min Nunes tries a flick but it goes to no one, so he races at Joelinton to press; Joelinton gets the ball away.
1 min Why is Castore suddenly all over the show? The Pony de nos jours?
1 min Away we go, Newcastle in their Saudi Arabia away kit. Football is the winner.
Updated
Hi-ho Wolverhampton. The crowd are up for this one, belting out the chorus of their signature song. Their team need them.
Absolute tune pumping at Molineux as the players come out. Sorry, but you’ll have to talk amongst yourselves – I’m off to the kluhrb.
The players are tunnelled…
At Tannadice, Celtic lead Dundee United 9-0. Both them and Rangers making the Champions League groups is a potentially interesting but terrifying development for the SPL, given the pre-existing exchequer disparity.
Jamie Carragher reckons that, given Newcastle’s two big misses, this is a chance for Wolves and he’ll be delighted to learn that I concur. If they can compete physically, they’ve got the craft to pick holes about the box – but can they create and take chances?
On Sky, we have a quick look at Saint-Maximin, who might be the funnest player in the league. And now he looks to be maturing without losing all the joy – goodness me, that’s an achievement on it’s own – but as I mentioned below, if he doesn’t create it’s hard to see who will.
Eddie Howe confirms they were waiting until the last minute hoping Isaak would get his work permit but it didn’t arrive, and that Guimaraes picked up a niggle in midweek. He says Wood has never let him down, scored and played well in midfield, and that his team will need the solid attitude they’ve displayed so far this season. Wolves have, he reckons, got some dangerous attackers, but if his lot get themselves going, they’ve got plenty of firepower themselves.
Updated
On which point, it’s not just Longstaff – that Newcastle midfield is not unlike those favoured by Jürgen Klopp before Thiago arrived, three serious athletes able to out-run and out-strength pretty much any other trio. And Wolves’ might just lack a bit physically, because, though Moutinho and Neves are fine passers, they’re neither as fast nor as powerful as the men who’ll be setting about them, and Nunes is still acclimatising. Newcastle might still struggle to create – unlike Liverpool, they don’t have full-backs as good as Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andy Robertson – but if they dominate physically, they’ll hope to get Alain Saint-Maximin enough of the ball to do damage.
As for Newcastle, those two absentees will be problematic – Guimaraes is serious player, and gives them craft they don’t have without him, while Wilson holds it up and gets goals. Longstaff, in for the former, might just be growing into the player he looked like becoming when he bullied Man City at the start of his career – Michael Carrick with legs would be a helluva player – but Wood will necessitate a change in approach, a focal point but not a point of difference.
It feels faintly ludicrous to bemoan Wolves’ travails in front of goal. Under Nuno Espírito Santo, it was easy to blame a conservative approach that was almost an insult to the talented attackers he had at his disposal. But under the more expansive Lage, the same problem persists, and Newcastle are unlikely to let them play themselves into prolificity, were prolificity a word.
Oh, and Lage still hopes to get in a couple more players, also noting that Guedes has just found a home – mazal tov, old mate – and Nunes has a bag of clothes. My guess is that what he really wants is a goalscorer. I really like Podence, who has skill and attitude, but he’s more of a 10 than a 9 – Lage mentioned this too – and it doesn’t feel like he can rely on Jiménez, much as we hope to the contrary.
Bruno Lage tells Sky that “all the good signs are there”, and though Wolves only have one point, they’re playing pretty well. He’s got players coming back from injury who didn’t have a pre-season, and also notes that they’ve hired two fine players – Nunes and Guedes – who are just getting comfy. He’s building a squad with competition for places, he reckons – Traoré, Podence and Hwang on the bench says he’s right – and asked by Don Goodman if he’s changed to a back four for reasons of creativity, he says the idea is the same regardless of formation, and actually wanted to go with 4-3-3 last season, but it’s taken him until now to feel ready.
Updated
Newcastle also make two changes: Callum Wilson and Bruno Guimarães are injured, so Sean Longstaff and Chris Wood come in; Alexander Isak is still awaiting his work permit
Updated
Wolves make two changes from the side that lost at Spurs: Ait-Nouri drops out, with Nelson Semedo coming in, and Daniel Podence is on the bench, replaced by Raúl Jiménez. But the main chance looks to be tactical, and a change from 3-5-2 to 4-3-3. Even on paper, the balance looks better, and a midfield of Moutinho, Neves and Nunes should be enough to contest control, with the extra man in attack giving them something extra to go at. There’s still no place, though, for Adama Traoré – thogh he’s a pretty decent option to have in reserve.
Teams!
Wolves (a sensible 4-3-3): Sa; Semedo, Collins, Kilman, Jonny; Moutinho, Neves, Nunes; Neto, Jimenez, Guedes. Subs: Sarkic, Ait-Nouri, Podence, Hwang, Mosquera, Toti, Dendoncker, Traore, Campbell.
Newcastle (a matter-of-principle 4-3-3): Pope; Trippier, Schar, Botman, Burn; Willock, Longstaff, Joelinton; Almiron, Wood, Saint-Maximin. Subs: Darlow, Dummett, Lascelles, Ritchie, Targett, Manquillo, Fraser, Murphy, Anderson.
Referee: Peter Bankes (Lancashire)
Preamble
Our teams this afternoon have made contrasting starts to the season. Newcastle are the feelgood story of the summer, Eddie Howe’s merry bunch of altruistic underdogs building on the progress made last term and developing into a serious force. Though they’ve only won once in three, a creditable point at Brighton was followed by an inspirational draw with Manchester City, a game in which they hit a level of performance far beyond what most teams can offer.
Except that is only half of the story. Though it was difficult not to be impressed by how adeptly they moved the ball and created overloads, what was even more striking was their bravery and intensity. Going a goal down to the champions in just five minutes, there was ample excuse to abandon the gameplan to stay in the game, but Newcastle did nothing of the sort, continuing to throw men forward and take chances on the ball. They were earned every bit of the 3-1 lead they accumulated, just as they did the point they defended when City came on strong towards the end. It feels wrong to call a draw a statement performance, but it’s no less right for that – and that was before they added Alexander Isak into the mix.
Wolves, on the other hand, have just one point from three games, courtesy a 0-0 home thriller with Fulham. On the face of things, that’s a problem, but looking at their squad, it’s easy to feel optimistic for them: Pedro Neto is still feeling his way back, Gonçalo Guedes is settling, Nathan Collins is promising and Matheus Nunes is a potential gamechanger. They do, though, need to get a wriggle on – confidence is contagious and defeat today would hit them hard, so there’s plenty on the line at Molineux, and it’s live!
Kick-off: 2pm BST
Updated
