Norwich 1-2 Wolves: Raul Jimenez scores late winner at Carrow Road
- Published
- comments
Jimenez's goal was his first in the Premier League since 23rd November
Raul Jimenez scored his 16th goal of the season as Wolves came from behind to win 2-1 at Norwich, who are now six points from safety in the Premier League.
The Canaries dominated the first half and deservedly took the lead when Todd Cantwell fired home from the middle of the box after pouncing on a loose ball.
But Wolves hit back after the break when Romain Saiss headed powerfully home.
Jimenez then snatched victory for the visitors when he fired in after Tim Krul had denied Matt Doherty.
It was a disappointing result for Norwich, who could have been out of sight in the first half after Teemu Pukki was twice denied when one on one with keeper Rui Patricio, while Alex Tettey hit the post.
The Canaries remain in 19th place but Southampton's win against Aston Villa means the Saints move up to 17th, six points clear of Norwich.
Meanwhile, victory for Wolves moves them up to sixth and gets them back to winning ways after their 11-match unbeaten run was ended by Tottenham last week.
First-half fight not enough for struggling Canaries
Todd Cantwell has been directly involved in seven Premier League goals this season (five goals and two assists)
Home form is likely to be key to Norwich's hopes of staying in the Premier League and it is something that needs to drastically improve if they are to survive for a second season in the top flight.
This defeat means they are now without a win in front of their own fans since their impressive 3-2 victory against champions Manchester City on 14 September.
Despite that worrying run, there were positives to take from this performance as they dominated a surprisingly subdued Wolves side for well over an hour.
This display, coupled with the one in their 1-1 draw with second-placed Leicester last weekend, should give concerned home fans some comfort, but having let slip a lead for a second game in a row, Daniel Farke's side need to start improving their ability to close out matches.
Wolves leave it late again
Wolves are once again on course for a season in which they surpass expectations and are looking capable of bettering their seventh-place finish last term.
However, while they did not get the result their performance warranted against Tottenham last time out, this was a game they were fortunate to win, with Patricio called upon to make several excellent saves in the first half to restrict Norwich to a one-goal lead at the break.
But under Nuno Espirito Santo, Wolves are team that fight until the very end of games, and they made the most of their limited chances to turn another potential defeat into victory.
This is the 11th time in the Premier League this season they have conceded the first goal - the joint-most alongside Arsenal - but on eight of those occasions they have fought back to get a result and that was the case once again.
Man of the match - Rui Patricio (Wolves)
Rui Patricio made several important saves in the first half to keep the deficit at one goal and give Wolves the platform to go on and win the game
'Small details the difference' - what they said
Sometimes football is unfair - Daniel Farke
Norwich boss Daniel Farke, speaking to BBC Sport: "We were 1-0 up, played fantastic, we had two or three one on ones and hit the inside of the post. No-one could complain if we were 4-0 up at half-time. It feels like the most unfair sport in the world but you have to accept it.
"The small details were the difference today. I can't accuse my players too much. They played fantastic today. They were able to use two of their few chances - but we could not use our 10 or 12 chances.
"They are not machines. Even your best striker who is in red hot form missing chances. It is not a day to punish players.
"It is a tough setback and we will be disappointed, but we go again."
We learnt from mistakes in second half - Nuno Espirito Santo
Wolves boss Nuno Espirito Santo, speaking to BBC Sport: "We had a very poor first half. We didn't block with the vertical balls that broke our lines, but I am happy we gave a very good second half.
"When you see you are making mistakes and try and learn from them, that is what the players did. The players recovered a lot of balls in Norwich's half and didn't let them play. We did that and took control of the game, we scored and managed the win very well.
"We had to find new solutions to block Norwich. They are a very good team but I think we were better in the second half because we learned from our mistakes. It is part of us. We are relentless and go to the end. Every game is very important. Every game is a cup final, a final you have to compete in."
Clean sheet eludes Norwich again - the stats
Wolves have beaten Norwich away from home in the top flight for only the second time, and the first since February 1980.
Norwich have failed to keep a clean sheet in 13 Premier League home games, their longest such run in the competition.
Raul Jimenez has been directly involved in 12 goals (seven goals and five assists) for Wolves in the Premier League this season, double that of any team-mate.
Since the beginning of last season, Wolves' Joao Moutinho has assisted eight league goals from corner situations, at least two more than any other player
Emiliano Buendia created nine chances in this match, seven of which came in the first half. The last Norwich player to create as many in a league game was Nathan Redmond, who set up nine chances in a Championship match against Birmingham in September 2014.
What next?
Norwich travel to Aston Villa on 26 December (15:00 GMT), while Wolves host Manchester City on 27 December (19:45).