Wolves player ratings: 'Unforgivable' 3/10 and several 4s, but two earn 7s in Chelsea thrashing

Wolves suffered a nightmare return to Molineux as Chelsea, inspired by a clinical second-half hat-trick from Noni Madueke and a world-class display from Cole Palmer, thrashed Wanderers 6-2 to claim their first three Premier League points under Enzo Maresca.

The first half was promising for the hosts as they went toe-to-toe with the visitors in an entertaining 45 minutes, going into the break level at 2-2. O’Neil’s men capitulated at the start of the second period, however, as Madueke was ruthless to strike three times in the space of merely 17 minutes. At that point, Chelsea’s lead was insurmountable - and it was deserved as Wolves defended horrifically.

Sunday’s clash was frantic from the very start as Chelsea took just two minutes to find an opener through Nicolas Jackson. The Senegalese striker, left unmarked by Joao Gomes and Matt Doherty from a corner, nodded home at the far post after an unintentional Matheus Cunha flick-on.

There was a frenzy between both teams after the goal as Wolves fans jeered Madueke, who made a controversial social media post about Wolverhampton on Saturday night. Jackson then reacted to the chants and boos, running over to celebrate for a second time in front of the Sir Jack Hayward Stand.

Yerson Mosquera went agonisingly close to handing Wolves a quickfire equaliser as the centre-back rose highest to meet an in-swinging Cunha corner, but the header fizzed narrowly wide of the right post. The game became very end-to-end as Wolves surged in the search for an equaliser, Cunha seeing a goal disallowed for offside and Madueke having a powerful curler saved by a diving Jose Sa.

O’Neil’s side netted a deserved equaliser in the 27th minute as Cunha fired past Robert Sanchez into the bottom right corner. The move was started by an excellent tackle from Jean-Ricner Bellegarde on Moises Caicedo. Rayan Ait-Nouri then dribbled past two before squaring to Cunha through a crowd of bodies. Some tense words were exchanged between Jackson and Cunha afterwards, prompting yet another shoving match between the two teams.

Wolves gained brief momentum from their goal as they took control of proceedings and by-passed Chelsea’s midfield with ease, either dribbling past or playing one-twos to beat the press. Cunha went close to taking advantage of the space in behind but was denied a second goal by the crossbar.

But then, out of nowhere, Cole Palmer worked his magic to give Chelsea the lead instead, lobbing Sa on the half-volley from around 25 yards. Ice cold, the England international, teed up by a Jackson knock-down from a route-one Sanchez pass, spotted Sa off his line and finished in world-class fashion.

The Blues’ second lead didn’t last long as Jorgen Strand Larsen roared Molineux back into the life, rounding off a remarkable first half by scoring instinctively to make it 2-2 in stoppage time. Ait-Nouri swung in a free-kick and it was nodded back across by Toti for Strand Larsen to slide in and poke into the net on the volley for his first Wolves goal.

Wanderers should’ve been the team with the momentum at the start of the second period but they capsized in dramatic fashion. Madueke scored three quickfire goals in a devastating manner, giving Chelsea a 5-2 lead. Perhaps the most disliked man in Molineux before his goals and even more so afterward, the winger was ruthlessly clinical.

For his first, Madueke ran onto a Palmer pass and cut in to deflect the ball in off Ait-Nouri. His second was made far too easy as Ait-Nouri was caught out of position and he was able to nutmeg Sa with ease at the goalkeeper’s near post. Madueke then secured the match ball by firing emphatically beyond Sa and into the far corner.

Wolves thought they’d earned a route back into game in the 78th minute as Mario Lemina thumped the ball into the roof of the net on the half-volley, but the goal was disallowed for a Toti offside in the build-up. Matters were then made even worse as Chelsea made it 6-2, new signing Joao Felix firing clinically beyond Sa from a clever Pedro Neto cut-back.

Strand Larsen had a chance to grab a consolation goal late on as he latched onto a misplaced Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall pass, but the striker’s shot was scuffed wide. Wolves, stunned by Chelsea’s onslaught earlier in the half, were understandably abandoned by much of the home crowd. O’Neil will have a tough job lifting his players after that.

Wolves player ratings vs Chelsea

Here’s how Birmingham World reporter Charlie Haffenden rated the Wolves players out of 10 on a difficult afternoon at Molineux.

Jose Sa - 3

Caught in no man’s land and lobbed by Palmer for Chelsea’s second goal. Had a shaky moment earlier in the first period as he dropped the ball and nearly allowed Jackson an easy tap-in. Beaten at his near post for all three of Madueke’s goals, which is rather unforgivable. Two saves from the winger in the first half were the only positives.

Matt Doherty - 4

Put in several well-timed tackles but was beaten for pace far too often, particularly by former teammate Neto. Also didn’t show enough awareness at the near post for Jackson’s opener.

Yerson Mosquera - 4

Made an outstanding sprint to catch Jackson, who was one-on-one with Sa in the first half. Got close to getting on the scoresheet, too, as he headed whiskers past the post in the ninth minute. It all fell apart in the second half, however, as he mistimed tackles in the lead-up to two goals and really struggled with his positioning.

Toti Gomes - 4

Assisted Strand-Larsen’s volley with a well-guided header across the area but was at fault for two of Madueke’s goals as he failed to track the winger’s runs. Had a mix-up with Sa approaching half time, too, very nearly gifting Jackson a second goal.

Rayan Ait-Nouri - 4 (off 67’)

Assisted Cunha’s goal with a great outside-of-the-boot pass after a terrific run. Also took the free-kick that led to Strand Larsen’s goal. Booked for a poorly-timed challenge on Madueke, however, and was all over the shop - caught out of position for Chelsea’s fourth and fifth goals.

Mario Lemina - 5

Definitely not one of the worst culprits, especially in possession, but was ultimately at the heart of a midfield that was torn to shreds in the second half. Unlucky to see a wonder strike disallowed.

Joao Gomes - 4

Worked hard in a tense midfield battle but didn’t come out on top anywhere near often enough. Left Jackson unmarked for the opening goal, too. Threaded a couple of lovely passes to Bellegarde and Cunha in the first half.

Jean-Ricner Bellegarde - 6 (off 68’)

Started the move for Wolves’ goal, dispossessing Caicedo and passing through a gap to Ait-Nouri. Got involved in the build-ups to attacks in the first half but went missing after the break.

Matheus Cunha - 7 (off 68’)

A defiant display in the first 45. Netted for 1-1 by striking emphatically past Sanchez from around 12 yards and struck the crossbar with a deflected effort later on. Deserved his goal as he pressed high throughout and wound up Jackson, which went down well with most of Molineux. 

Hwang Hee-chan - 5 (off 59’)

Struggled to get involved on the right flank and was rightfully hooked just before the hour mark.

Jorgen Strand Larsen - 7

Scored his first goal for Wolves, meeting a Toti flick-on with composure. Got the crowd going with some passionate defensive work from the front. Brave to take a powerful Palmer free-kick directly to the face, too. Scuffed a good chance wide approaching the end.