Wolverhampton Wanderers vs Luton Town FC (27th Apr 2024)

Hatters fall to narrow defeat at Molineux

Despite a late rally the Town’s hopes of lifting themselves out of the relegation zone were ended as Wolves secured a narrow victory at Molineux.

Having looked the more likely to open the scoring after a bright first half-hour, the Hatters fell behind six minutes before the interval when Hee Chan Hwang’s low finish beat Thomas Kaminski 18 seconds after Carlton Morris went close at the other end.

And Wolves took just four minutes after half-time to double their lead when Toti Gomes nodded past Kaminski from close range.

Wolves were denied a third by a combination of poor finishing and saves from Kaminski before Town striker Elijah Adebayo was introduced to make his first appearance since February with 12 minutes left.

Within minutes of his introduction the Hatters found a way back into the game when captain Morris volleyed home with ten minutes remaining as the Town struck another late goal.

Substitutes Cauley Woodrow and Luke Berry both came close to rescuing a last-gasp point but Wolves held on.

The result leaves the Town in the relegation zone, one point from safety with nearest rivals Nottingham Forest in action on Sunday.

This group are made of strong stuff - and they'll be back for when Everton visit the Kenny under the lights next Friday.

See you then.

Town: Kaminski; Hashioka (sub Berry 66), Doughty (sub Onyedinma 88), Burke, Mengi, Osho; Lokonga, Barkley (Adebayo 78); Clark (sub Woodrow 66), Chong, Morris.

Subs not used: Shea, Krul, Mpanzu, Townsend, Johnson.

Attendance: 31,531, including 3,012 shouting for the Town in the away end.

Reaction | Rob reflects on Wolves

The Town boss gives his post-match reaction after seeing his side go down to a narrow loss at Wolves.

“We come away frustrated because we didn’t want to lose but I saw a team there that responded well after last week’s disappointment,” said Edwards.

“At 2-0 it could have gone the other way but we showed some fight right to the end.

“We found a way back in it and kept pushing.

“If anyone thought we lacked belief or were giving up, you wouldn’t have seen that commitment at the end from the players.

“People made an impact from the bench and it was great to have Elijah back. That’s part of his training to get him up to speed.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eiOwMWIoIX8 – Rob Edwards post match interview

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_xnlCKjpmU – match highlights

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJdddVEjBJY – extended match highlights

Hatters suffer yet another blow to their relegation hopes with Wolves loss

Premier League: Wolverhampton Wanderers 2 Luton Town 1

Luton saw their chances of securing another season in the Premier League suffer yet another body blow as they fell to a 2-1 defeat against Wolverhampton Wanderers this afternoon.

Hopes had been raised going into the game, with the hosts' loss against AFC Bournemouth in midweek stretching their unbeaten run to six matches, only scoring just four goals in that time too. However, they took advantage of some more poor defending from the Hatters to find the net twice, as although Rob Edwards' side gave themselves a chance late on when Carlton Morris was on target, it wasn't enough to prevent a 10th defeat from 13 matches.

Town made one change to the XI that were thrashed 5-1 by Brentford last weekend, Daiki Hashioka replacing the injured Issa Kabore, although the main talking point was the inclusion of striker Elijah Adebayo on the bench for the first time since the 2-1 defeat to Manchester United on February 18. Eager to get the Bees’ humiliation out of their system, Luton looked to do just that at the beginning of the contest, making a forceful start, Jordan Clark cleverly releasing Tahith Chong in the area, and when he was tackled, the ball dropped to Ross Barkley who wasted no time at all in lining up a fierce blast that Jose Sa parried away.

Reece Burke then sent Clark away with a long ball on the right, the midfielder spotting a retreating Sa and went for a deft lob, getting nowhere near enough on it, turning away in frustration as it dribbled through to the Portuguese stopper. Morris had a powerful effort blocked as there was no doubting the Hatters' intent, already giving a display that was miles better than last weekend, the forward putting his looping header from Hashioka's cross into the gloves of Sa.

Wolves looked dangerous whenever Mario Lemina and Matheus Cunha were in possession, as Lemina threaded a pass through for Hee Chan Hwang to get behind Gabe Osho, Thomas Kaminski saving well low down, the follow up blocked by the recovering defender. Toti tried his luck from range, Kaminski with a far simpler save on this occasion, as Joao Gomes almost made the most of a mistake by Barkley, lashing over the top.

Luton had their best chance on 38 minutes, winning the ball back high up, Clark's inviting cross met by Morris, who from a few yards out, could only direct his header straight at Sa. The miss was to prove costly as Wolves went straight up the other end and with Burke tangling with Cunha, the home midfielder proved stronger, as he was able to hold off Luton's defender and find Hwang. He advanced into the area, seeing his shot deflect off Mengi, go through Hashioka's legs, which gave the motionless Kaminski no chance.

Luton had to start the second half and make sure they stayed in the game, which they managed when Clark was back to make a terrific sliding intervention and prevent Toto doubling the score. The respite didn't last long though as from the short corner, a cross from deep saw Hashioka, who had struggled throughout, completely lose Toti, allowing the Portuguese defender to power his diving header beyond Kaminski to double the lead with just three minutes gone.

Town managed to keep the back door shut thanks to Burke's vital header as Boubacar Traore looked like he was going to find the top corner on the hour mark, Edwards opting to bring on Cauley Woodrow and Luke Berry for Hashioka and Clark. The Hatters looked a beaten side by now though, and should have been 3-0 down on 69 minutes, the visitors' completely switching off to allow one ball to release Nelson Semedo who went clean through on Kaminski, the keeper ensuring the deficit stayed at two.

Lemina ended a bright sprint forward by powering over, before the brightest moment of the half saw Adebayo make his first appearance for over two months when replacing Barkley. He immediately made an impact, winning a corner and from the set-piece on 80 minutes, Luton were back in it, Doughty's set-piece volleyed back to him by Woodrow, the wingback kept onside by a defender who hadn't ventured far enough away from the goal-line.

He floated in another threatening ball that was won by Burke, Morris spinning to volley in his 10th goal of the season from a matter of yards. Adebayo then won another corner that was headed out to Woodrow, who was far closer on this occasion, his volley from outside the box curving narrowly away from target.

Late on, with Osho barely able to move, but Town having made all their substitutions, they couldn't force the pressure to look like claiming an unlikely equaliser until the very last kick, Berry's ambitious straight forcing the most routine save out of Sa. The final whistle saw Town's players slump to the floor as they remained in the bottom three and will now be keeping everything crossed that they are still a point behind Forest going into the Everton game next week, the Reds entertaining Manchester City tomorrow afternoon.

Wolves: Jose Sa, Matt Doherty, Rayan Ait-Nouri (Huge Bueno 86), Mario Lemina, Boubacar Traore, Joao Gomes, Hee Chan Hwang, Matheus Cunha (Pablo Sarabia 76), Nelson Semedo, Maximillian Kilman (C), Toti. Subs not used: Dan Bentley, Tommy Doyle, Enso Gonzalez, Ty Barnett, Wes Okoduwa, Tawanda Chirewa, Nathan Fraser.

Hatters: Thomas Kaminski, Daiki Hashioka (Luke Berry 66), Reece Burke, Teden Mengi, Gabe Osho, Alfie Doughty (Fred Onyedinma 88), Sambi Lokonga, Ross Barkley (Elijah Adebayo 78), Jordan Clark (Cauley Woodrow 66), Tahith Chong, Carlton Morris (C). Subs not used: James Shea, Tim Krul, Joe Johnson, Pelly Ruddock Mpanzu, Andros Townsend.

Referee: David Coote.

Booked: Gomes 11, Lokonga 58.

Edwards left 'incredibly frustrated' with Luton's defending for Wolves' second goal at Molineux

Toti left unmarked to head past Kaminski during 2-1 victory

Hatters boss Rob Edwards was left ‘incredibly frustrated’ with the manner in which his side conceded the crucial second goal during their 2-1 defeat against Wolverhampton Wanderers this afternoon.

With the visitors starting well at Molineux, Ross Barkley testing home keeper Joe Sa in the early stages, Town went close again on 37 minutes, Jordan Clark dinking over a cross that saw Carlton Morris put his header too close to the Portuguese stopper. Just moments later and Luton were fishing the ball out of their own net though, Hee Chan Hwang beating Thomas Kaminski via a deflection from Teden Mengi.

Town swapped ends very much still in the contest though, but with three minutes gone in the second period, a short corner routine saw a deep cross by the hosts headed in by the unmarked Toti, who had somehow escaped the attention of Daiki Hashioka to power home from just a few yards out and give the visitors an even bigger mountain to climb.

Although Carlton Morris was able to pull one back with 10 minutes left for Luton, who by now had Elijah Adebayo on, Luton couldn’t bag an equaliser, Luke Berry’s ambitious attempt with the final kick easy for Sa. Speaking afterwards it was clear the second goal still ranked with Edwards, who said: “Of course we don't want to lose football matches, last week we had a difficult day, we did and we talked about performance throughout the week.

"We talked about fight, character, desire, we talked about how we want to try and be with the ball and how we want to try and cause Wolves problems. I thought I saw a lot of that, especially in the build-up to the goal that we conceded, the first one. I thought we were growing into playing a really good performance, we had an effort on target and then 19 seconds later, bang, there's a little bit of a deflection and it’s in the back of our net, we find ourselves 1-0 down.

"We know what spaces we give away, I don’t know if there was a little bit of a pull, a bit of contact on Burkey (Reece Burke), but it ended up in our box and then a deflected goal. I was really frustrated with how we conceded the second goal, you can’t stop a short corner as you’ve got to be 10 yards off, then it goes 20 yards back with a loopy cross that came in, but we can defend better in the box, we allowed them to have a free header and we're 2-0 down.

“At that stage, especially with what happened last week, I wanted to see the character, we needed to see it. We needed to see a response, we had to try and open up and push a little bit. Wolves had one or two moments and counter-attacks, but we found a way to get back in the game. Some of the subs made an impact and in the end we finished the game with getting the last goal, getting the last shot on target, we can take that forward into the final three games.

"So incredibly frustrated with how we conceded the two goals, disappointed to lose the game of course, but what I saw was some of the things I’ve been asking for throughout the week. I saw elements of a good performance against a good Wolves team. They’ve got some brilliant players, especially at the top end of the pitch. They’ve got a lot of quality, but what we didn’t do today, we didn’t go away, we kept going, kept pushing and we can take that into the final three games.”

Luton chief remains convinced Town have enough to remain a Premier League club

Edwards talks up his side’s chances of staying in the top flight

Luton boss Rob Edwards remains convinced that his side have enough to remain in the Premier League this season despite letting another chance to climb out of the bottom three slip away at Wolverhampton Wanderers yesterday.

The Hatters headed to Molineux to face a home side on a winless run of six games in the top flight, only scoring four goals in that time, and having been beaten 1-0 on home soil by AFC Bournemouth in midweek. Unfortunately for the visitors, Gary O’Neil’s starting XI was boosted by the return of midfield duo Matheus Cunha and Boubacar Traore, the pair costing around £55m, as they looked to move into the top half of the table themselves.

An even first period saw Wolves eventually go in front when moments after Carlton Morris put a header too close to Jose Sa, they flooded forward, Cunha finding Hwang Hee-chan who found the net via a cruel deflection off Teden Mengi. Immediately after the break, Daiki Hashioka lost his man from a short corner routine which allowed Toti a free header from close range to double the scores, as although Morris pulled one back with 10 minutes left, it wasn’t enough for a grandstand finish.

Luton’s position, although precarious, could still be in their own hands, as they remained a point behind Nottingham Forest, who host in-form title-challengers Manchester City this afternoon. The Hatters entertain an already safe Everton next Friday night, then go to West Ham and welcome Fulham to Kenilworth Road on the final day, with the Reds going to Sheffield United next weekend before hosting a Chelsea team capable of producing anything on their current form.

Forest end their campaign at Burnley, the Clarets themselves now in with a real shout of staying up too, one point behind Luton after drawing 1-1 at Manchester United yesterday, to make it just one defeat in their last eight matches.

However, asked about his own side’s chances of beating the drop based on yesterday’s evidence, Edwards said: “What I saw is a team that is committed and tried to do the right things. We clearly made some mistakes, a free header in the box is the biggest one that we made, and we have said the same kinds of things a lot this season, where we’ve been close, but we’ve come away with nothing ultimately.

"But I’ve seen enough over the course of this season and especially with some of the players, Eli (Elijah Adebayo) coming back as well, that we can cause teams problems, especially at home. So I believe that we can and the players do as well, as if they didn’t, they’d have shown that in their performance. At two-nil down, it would have become even more comfortable for Wolves, we got the last goal, we kept going and had the last shot on target right towards the end.

"There wasn’t loads in the game today, Wolves have got some good players, they’ve had a really good season. I know they’ve had a bit of a difficult run, they were always going to respond after Wednesday night and the performance as well, so I think we came up against them at the wrong time off the back of a performance they’ll be slightly disappointed with. They had one or two bodies coming back as well which helps them, but there’s enough there, we’ve got enough there.”

Having gone into the game on the back of a dreadful 5-1 defeat to Brentford on home soil, Edwards had been more than pleased with the way his side got that display out of their system in the early stages, beginning strongly as they went close through Ross Barkley early on and also had some real moments of danger before Wolves broke the deadlock.

The boss continued: “We started the game well, we were good, we took the ball, we were a threat. We probably wanted to arrive with a few more numbers, be a bit snappier in the final third, but it was pretty good. We had a good effort on target, it was a comfortable save and we know what spaces we give away. I thought we dealt with that long ball, it ended up in our box and a deflected goal, but we started the game well, we showed some good stuff with the ball and without it as well.

"I thought we were pretty solid, clearly then we had to open up. We made some changes, Chongy (Tahith Chong) at left wingback, Wolves had one or two moments, but I think if you look at the game with your eyes, even with the stats, there’s not loads in the game. In terms of an away performance and especially how we were last week, there’s a lot of good stuff there to take into the final three games.”

The manner in which Wolves took the lead saw yet another deflected strike end up in the back of the Hatters’ net, continuing their misfortune when trying to keep the ball out, conceding an own goal and seeing Son Heung-min’s effort deviate off Hashioka at Spurs for a late winner, before the Japanese international also unluckily diverted in Erling Haaland’s wayward volley during the recent 5-1 defeat to Manchester City as well.

Edwards wasn’t about to bemoan the bad luck though, adding: “We’ve had a few moments that have gone against us, but I think you have to earn that as well. If you don’t shoot you don’t score and they earned that. We don’t want it to get to that point in the first place, but it did. I’m not going to say things are going against us as I’m not that kind of guy, I look at what we can affect and what we can try and do. There’s some stuff there that I know we can really take forward into now two huge home games and an away trip to West Ham in between.

"We don’t know what we’re going to need, but the big message from me is we’re in this fight. We’ve seen a team that’s committed there, they didn’t go under at two-nil down away from home against a good Wolves team and I know Wolves have been on a tough run but they’ve had people missing as well. They start to get one or two back you can see the difference it makes, especially a couple of those players at the top end of the pitch. We kept going and we’ll take that into the final three games.”