Wolves Fans' Verdict v Fulham: A remarkable away win

Clive Smith

We don't get many away days like that. I enjoyed it to the full, even if it meant a sore throat. Feel free to get carried away. 

The teamsheet gave no hint of what was to come, and even at half-time most of us would have taken a point. Lemina was picked to be the 'new' Coady although, more bravely, in a back four rather than five. He rewarded us with a trademark diagonal ball to Cunha which saw the striker score a sumptuous goal with a classy finish.

That was our equaliser following an opening goal that had looked very avoidable. Ait-Nouri, Rodrigo and Andre might all have done better.

We were content to let Fulham have possession but we constantly protected our goal well, allowing the woodwork to intervene once to prevent our ex-goalscorer from scoring, but otherwise we did well.

Sometimes our passing can be nervy, wasteful and even tedious but when it comes off... it can be a joy to watch. The lead up to our second goal was like that. Cunha harshly got the assist but those present know that the constant chanting, from the away end that had begun from the start of the half, must surely have made the telling contribution. It is good seeing Gomes nearer the opposition goal and scoring.

Only then at 2-1 did the thought of us winning actually seem a possibility, but with over 30 minutes to go there was still plenty of work to do. But we did it. Fulham rotated their team extensively, chasing an equaliser, while GON stuck with our starters. That was somewhat surprising because Bellegarde, Larsen and Andre looked to be running on empty. Not until the 87th minute did we make a change, scoring our third almost immediately before the not so tired Larsen assisted with our fourth.

A quite remarkable result, considering.

Obviously, most welcome, and a good celebration at the end was richly deserved. What a contrast to Brentford away, just half a dozen games ago.

It was hardly the ideal starting line-up but the sum of all the parts stood up to the challenge. The work rate was impressive from start to finish. Andre and Gomes provided a combative edge in midfield while MOTM Cunha put the icing on the cake when it was needed in the final third.

John Lalley

Saw the team-sheet, feared the worst. Trepidation justified in the opening exchanges. 

Raul, clearly still coursing gold and black in his veins, benevolently misses a sitter. Iwobi converts an attack that we had ample opportunity to stop at source. 

More indeterminate defending which has been a depressingly familiar caricature of the season so far. Amidst the disorganisation, it’s all too easy to forget the level of talent at our disposal simply because of the blandness we have endured trying to salvage an indifferent and listless campaign. 

Then, hey presto, for reasons bordering on the inexplicable, we stir ourselves from our slumbers and proceed to dismantle a highly competent outfit on their own patch with a swagger and a flourish not seen in months. And of course, Cunha with two supreme finishes further enhanced his deservedly burgeoning reputation. 

Just as significant was O’Neil’s post-match comment that the Brazilian had turned in his best performance off the ball all season. His one weakness has been his spasmodic loss of possession in midfield thereby inviting pressure and his failure to offer any contribution to the team from a defensive perspective. 

If he can improve this liability, then he stands to become almost the complete player. But great credit to the other guys too; real character and backbone. A superb outcome. 

Chuffed that Goncalo Guedes got on the scoresheet; must be frustrating for him hanging on the periphery and longing to see the back of Molineux, confidence eroded after nothing but frustration. But he can play and it was a treat to see him contribute and share in such a notable win.

Adam Virgo

An absolutely unbelievable win which no one was expecting, even more so once we saw the line-ups. Reverting to a back four due to injuries and Lemina slotting in at centre back, I think most of us would have snapped your hand off for a point so to come away with a 4-1 win was truly impressive.

We started slow and it was inevitable Alex Iwobi was going to score as he always seems to do against us. At 1-0 I thought it was going to be a comfortable win for Fulham considering how the game had started but clearly we had other ideas.

An exquisite pass from Mario Lemina which was Coady-esque and the touch and finish from Matheus Cunha was genuinely outstanding. A goal from practically nothing but two pieces of quality got us back in it.

After half time the game was so one-sided. We tore Fulham apart and they had no answers for the quality we had on show. A lovely move between a few players, Cunha being involved once again and Joao Gomes finishing it off wonderfully.

A lovely bit of Brazilian link-up again for the third but my word the finish from Cunha was outrageous. To caress it effortlessly into the top corner like he did was ridiculous and it just shows how good he is. He has to be one of the best players outside of the 'top 6' because most games for us he’s the best player on the pitch and he is producing magical moments on a weekly basis.

The fourth just encapsulated our game plan and even though Fulham had 10 men for around 10-15 mins due to an injury and using all of their subs, we punished them severely. A brilliant counter attack with the right pass from Strand Larsen and a calm finish from Guedes who absolutely deserves his first premier goal of the season for the effort he’s put in when given the chance.

An excellent day out for us fans and it must be something about West London and Wolves scoring lots of away goals because we managed four at Brentford and Chelsea last season as well as three at Brentford earlier this season. Four unbeaten and two wins a row, long may it continue!

Harry Lee

What a performance! 

Full of energy, drive, heart and determination, there were so many fantastic individual moments of quality in the game, but in Cunha Wolves have one of the best in form forwards in the league. 

When the team sheet was announced with no Bueno or Dawson, I like many others were fearing the worst, but Lemina slotted into CB like he’d played there so many times before, add to that a raking Neves style assist for our equaliser. 

Joao Gomes and Andre double pivot worked perfectly, with R.Gomes and Bellegarde working hard on the flanks to combat Fulham’s impressive wide threat. 

But Cunha was by far the best player on the pitch, he oozed quality when we needed it the most, his ball carrying ability and creativity is excellent. Most importantly he is bringing consistency to his game, along with improved finishing. 

It looks like to me the players still believe in Gary O’Neil who has led us to four unbeaten, Bournemouth up next, let’s hope he can get one over his old club. 

William Meddings

Well… safe to say nobody expected that, but then again, who cares? 

There were certainly a few raised eyebrows when the starting line-ups were announced and if I were a Fulham fan, I certainly would’ve been feeling confident. The phrase “here we go again” came to mind when we went 1-0 down, with another lacklustre performance and questionable tactics from O’Neil inbound. 

But no, Matheus Cunha wasn’t going to let that happen! Once again, the Brazilian came to our rescue and put in an unreal performance, capped off with two goals and assist. Luckily for us fans, the rest of the team followed in his footsteps and produced by far the best display we’ve seen all season. 

I’ve been incredibly critical of Gary and his decisions so far this season, but will happily give credit where credit is due and the result speaks for itself. Four games unbeaten now, including two wins - pretty good going. Long may it continue. 

Liam Berry

Wolves are gaining some serious momentum now, as we beat Fulham 4-1 at Craven Cottage. A huge win that came in strange circumstances, with only Toti Gomes as our one and only recognised centre-back on the pitch.

Santiago Bueno and Craig Dawson missed the game thought injury or illness, which left us with Toti Gomes as our only fit player in that position. However, he stepped up and put in an incredible display, forming an unexpected partnership with Mario Lemina. By no means am I saying this should be the way we play moving forward, but Lemina played really well in a position that he’s never played before. I was particularly surprised at how difficult it was for an in form Fulham team to break us down. So huge credit goes out to both of them!

A lot of the praise will most definitely go to Matheus Cunha, who was yet again excellent. However, I want to pick out a certain Rodrigo Gomes. After a really good pre season, I really expected him to hit the ground running, however it’s not worked out like that. It was only his second start, his other one being the first game of the season against Arsenal. There’s clearly a lot of weakness in his game, but his potential shined especially in that second half. With time, I think he will be a top player for Wolves, and prove why he had big clubs sniffing around him last summer.

With our upcoming fixtures becoming slightly more friendly now, this is a great opportunity to kick on now, and get some more points on the board. Hopefully our good run of form carries into Bournemouth at Molineux next weekend!

Matt Gallimore

What a huge result, for both the club and manager.

One win in 21 games raised huge doubts as to the future of Gary O'Neil, but two straight victories has surely given everyone the belief that he can get us moving up the league.

It's clear as day that the players are playing for him and he has support from above, but with the run of results that we were on, questions had to be answered as to whether a change was needed.

Even though the result against Southampton yielded a much needed three points, there were still parts of that performance that showed improvements were needed against stronger opposition.

This game was a marked step up from anything we have produced this season, where the second half provided glaring evidence that this squad was always capable of so much more.

With players like Joao Gomes, Ait-Nouri, Andre and Mario Lemina in the team, we have individual quality that warrants a better position than in the bottom three.

And then there is Matheus Cunha. A player who could literally play in any team in the Premier League. He is that good!

We have seen it for a long time now but this performance was absolute top drawer. From the work rate to the positional play, to the awareness and the finishing, this was a display of top quality from the Brazilian.

We are lucky to have him and if he keeps playing like this then there is no way we won't be moving higher up the table.

Big praise to Mario Lemina too who I thought was exceptional. With all the injuries in defence it was a makeshift role which he applied himself to brilliantly.  His calmness and then the ability to play out from the back was something we had been missing all season and after his best individual performance of this campaign I would keep him there against Bournemouth.

All in all, a great day, in which we showed what we are capable of collectively. Now let's kick on and keep up this momentum.

Finally, after showing our love for Neves at the Southampton game, it was great to see Raul Jimenez receive the same love here. These guys are legends at our club and Raul is the best striker I have seen at our club. He fully deserves the adulation us Wolves fans.