Bournemouth 1 Wolves 2 – What the stats reveal
Wolves were stellar in the first half and held on in the second to win at Bournemouth.
Let’s have a look at what the stats from whoscored.com – specialists in the in-depth analysis of detailed football data – show.
Magnificent Moutinho
We already know what a good day it was for Joao Moutinho, scoring a free-kick and playing a big part in Raul Jimenez’s goal before his new deal was announced in the evening.
But his stats make you appreciate his performance even more.
You would not associate the 5ft 7in midfielder with aerial prowess, but that did not stop him from winning three aerial battles – which only Jonny Castro Otto, with five, bettered.
The 33-year-old had a really high pass success rate as well, with 64 of his 69 (93 per cent) being accurate.
He also had 7.4 per cent of the game’s overall possession, meaning he had the ball more than anyone else on the pitch.
It was an immense all-round display from the man now tied down until 2022 – a stunning set-piece strike thrown in for good measure.
Composed centre-halves
Wolves now have three men – Leander Dendoncker, Conor Coady and Romain Saiss – playing at the back despite being considered midfielders in the past. They are maybe not the most hard-nosed defenders about, but in terms of bringing the ball out from the back, they add a lot.
In fact, Moutinho’s pass success rate of 93 per cent was not the highest for Wolves as Dendoncker’s was 94 per cent.
Coady managed 91 per cent and Saiss – who kept his cool despite earning a booking, which means he will miss the Sheffield United game – 92 per cent.
Having defenders who are calm with the ball is considered a key part of the game in this day and age. These three are very assured.
Relentless Raul
If you do not buy a ticket, you will not win the raffle.
And Raul Jimenez fully understands that.
The Mexican kept up his hot streak in Dorset, and he made it 14 goals across all competitions.
He did that by having six shots. Three of those were on target, and one went in.
You could say one goal from six shots is not anything to get too excited about.
But nobody puts away every shot they have, and Jimenez’s persistence is quite something.
He is constantly asking questions. If a shot is saved or misses the target, he will try again.
The 28-year-old has so much talent, but the goals are coming mainly because of his tenacity.
Neves not afraid
On the subject of shooting, Ruben Neves was the next in line when it came to shots, having tried his luck five times.
After playing in a deep-lying role earlier in the campaign, Neves has been happy to break forward in recent weeks.
None of his shots went on target – three off target, two blocked – so that needs to be worked on, but the ambition to attack and pose problems in the final third is always nice to see.
Neves was less wasteful with the ball too, with a pass success rate of 90 per cent.
His performances as of late have been much more entertaining, and long may it continue.
The better team
Despite the second half not living up to the first and – as is, strangely, often the way – Bournemouth improving when a man down, Wolves were well worth the victory.
They had more shots than the Cherries (17 to nine), more possession (53 to 47), a better pass success rate (87 to 80), won more aerial duels (22 to 12), made more tackles (11 to eight) and had more corners (nine to five).
Bournemouth made more successful dribbles (nine to seven), but they were dispossessed more times (six to four). A fair three points for Wolves.
