FA Cup: Brentford 1 Wolves 1 - Liam Keen and Nathan Judah analysis
Wolves lost Joao Gomes to a controversial red card within the opening nine minutes and eventually went 1-0 down just before half-time when Neal Maupay swept home.
But the visitors rallied and a Doyle screamer from 25 yards made it 1-1 in style.
Both sides had chances to win it in the remaining minutes but had to settle for a draw and the teams will now return to Molineux with a FA Cup fourth round spot up for grabs.
But the visitors rallied and a Doyle screamer from 25 yards made it 1-1 in style.
Both sides had chances to win it in the remaining minutes but had to settle for a draw and the teams will now return to Molineux with a FA Cup fourth round spot up for grabs.
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SportsTranscript
00:00 [Music plays]
00:09 Hello I'm Nathan Tudor, I'm here with Wolves reporter Mr. Liam Keane.
00:12 No this isn't a repeat, we are here for a second time in about 10 days.
00:15 FA Cup, Wolverhampton Wanderers won, Brentford won,
00:18 Liam won one, probably wouldn't have been that impressive if it was before the game.
00:23 However under those circumstances that's a quite superb performance.
00:27 Yeah, down to 10 men, 1-0 down, superb goal which we'll come on to gets you back in the game
00:33 and Wolves could have won it in the end.
00:36 The main word that I take away from that performance, and to be fair,
00:39 Gary O'Neill's Wolves in general this season is resilience.
00:43 That team is strong, close-knit and I think was well, you know,
00:50 worthy of getting a replay at the very least.
00:52 So credit to them because they came back from a tough start to the game.
00:57 Well look, Asia Cup lost players, AFCON lost players, injuries lost players
01:02 and then you lose your main central midfielder in the first 10 minutes of the game.
01:08 Talk me through the incident.
01:10 Yeah and of course as well with Mario Lamina being on compassionate leave at the moment,
01:13 I mean they hope that he'll be back for Brighton which would be a massive boost but,
01:17 without knowing that...
01:18 Or maybe the Brentford Reaper.
01:20 Yeah potentially, good point.
01:22 So yeah, I mean either way they hope he's back soon and obviously wish him and his family
01:25 all doing well in this hard time.
01:28 But yeah, the Giao Gomo situation, it was almost innocuous, it was bizarre.
01:33 No one really made much of a fuss about it in the stadium,
01:35 no one really made much of a fuss about it on the pitch.
01:37 And all of a sudden there was a red card being branded.
01:39 I didn't really know where it came from.
01:41 I was startled.
01:42 Watched the replay, it's a little bit of a late lunge to try and get the ball,
01:47 but it's very much, he's in control, I don't think it's reckless, I don't think it's dangerous.
01:52 Wasn't out of control?
01:54 If you catch the player on the Achilles, it's going to be painful.
01:58 Of course.
01:59 It's not going to be a...
02:00 And obviously he went off injured so hope the player's fine.
02:03 Nothing against Brentford the player.
02:05 But just because he's gone off injured doesn't mean to say that it's a red card.
02:07 Exactly, just because it's a result in an injury doesn't mean it's a red card.
02:10 I didn't think it was a red card, I thought it was a booking, absolutely.
02:13 It's 100% a booking.
02:15 It's not a red card for me.
02:17 And then particularly, I'm sure you were going to ask this and I'll go on to it anyway,
02:20 particularly when you compare it...
02:22 Well yeah, go for it, go for it.
02:23 ...to the dams guard situation on Tommy Doyle.
02:26 Shortly afterwards.
02:27 Shortly afterwards.
02:28 That is gone over the ball, stamp on the ankle.
02:31 Not intentional, I'm not blaming dams guard for trying to injure the player, nothing like that.
02:35 But he has gone over the ball, it's dangerous, it's out of control and he catches Doyle on the ankle.
02:39 Doyle to his credit doesn't make a fuss about it, gets on with it, but the referee...
02:42 Well, a little bit because he was down for a while.
02:45 No, I mean in terms of complaining.
02:47 Oh yeah, absolutely yeah.
02:48 I'm sure it hurt, don't get me wrong.
02:50 The referee doesn't even give a foul for it.
02:53 Astonishing.
02:54 It's a Brentford throw and then you play on.
02:55 Astonishing.
02:56 That's the biggest concern for me, is the consistency within a game and winning decisions,
03:01 and winning week by week, which you've seen throughout the Premier League all season.
03:03 You see, within one game, one thing is a red card, something which is arguably worse is not even a foul.
03:08 That for me is the biggest problem.
03:10 And for me, both incidents are exactly the same, to a certain extent.
03:15 And both incidents could quite easily have been just a foul, and probably should have been a foul.
03:19 But the absolute max, a yellow card.
03:21 Like you say, and the way things have gone this season, it had to be.
03:25 Wolves down to 10 men, after 8 minutes, and Brentford is just a throw in for that.
03:29 It's just insane.
03:30 Wolves have then got a massive uphill task.
03:33 And watching that first half, and I know of course they went 1-0 down, with Neil Moore played,
03:38 but actually they were quite comfortable in that half.
03:41 They changed it around a little bit, Balacar dropped in a little bit deeper when he needed to.
03:45 But at the same time, I thought, apart from the goal, they didn't look under massive threat, did they?
03:50 Yeah, the momentum swung at times for both sides, but at no point I think Wolves were completely...
03:54 Hanging on.
03:55 Yeah, exactly. There was no point when they were really completely out of control of the fixture.
03:59 Brentford had spells, Wolves had spells, but it was the way they were able to slow the game down,
04:04 control themselves and their own positioning and emotion, particularly being down to 10 men,
04:08 I thought was quite impressive.
04:10 So with that came the chances, and then eventually came the goal.
04:13 Had that not happened, Brentford would probably go on to take control of that game and get a second goal.
04:17 And then the game's gone.
04:18 I thought they started the second half very well as well.
04:20 I think it was pretty even, Stephens.
04:21 They were definitely... same as the first half, really.
04:24 I thought they weren't under massive pressure, and then came a massive moment.
04:28 And before that, the fact that Pedro Neto came onto this pitch.
04:32 Yeah.
04:33 And he was, if anyone's wondering, is he going to get back to the same level?
04:38 He was quite sensational for that cameo tonight.
04:41 Absolutely magnificent.
04:42 And I thought he was the catalyst of Wolves going from 50-50 in a game,
04:46 which was commendable in itself, to dominating a game 10 versus 11.
04:51 And of course played a big part into what you're going to describe as one of the most stunning goals
04:55 that I think I've seen live, and without doubt is the goal of the season so far.
04:59 Yeah, 100%.
05:00 Yeah, to your point about Neto, spot on, no complaints.
05:03 He had 35 minutes plus added time there, so about 40 altogether,
05:07 which would be great for him getting back into fitness and collapsing the injury,
05:10 but he looked sharp.
05:12 He looked dangerous, he looked confident, and that is exactly what Wolves,
05:15 that's music to his ears, that's exactly what they needed to see from him.
05:18 So that in itself is brilliant.
05:20 And then, yeah, it's a short corner, he's played out to Bellegarde,
05:22 Bellegarde comes back inside, plays it back to Neto.
05:24 It's not actually a great pass back to Neto, to be honest, it's a little bit short.
05:27 Neto manages to get to it first, plays it into Doyle.
05:31 The man to my right now, but to my left watching the game, was saying,
05:34 "Oh, don't shoot, don't shoot."
05:36 I say, "Shoot!"
05:37 You definitely were.
05:38 I say, "Shoot!"
05:39 You definitely were.
05:40 I wasn't, I wasn't.
05:41 I've dropped you in it there.
05:42 I wasn't, you killed me.
05:43 It's the intelligence and the awareness first,
05:46 is that he takes a touch out onto his left foot, with his right foot initially,
05:49 to take it beyond the player that's charging towards him,
05:52 and then it opens up 25-ish yards, left foot,
05:55 and it is rifled like an arrow into that top corner.
05:59 When you see this, because I know this game wasn't on TV tonight,
06:01 but you'll probably see the replays or the highlights,
06:03 this is as crisp and as sweet as you can strike a football.
06:08 Yeah, absolutely.
06:09 And it's just so satisfying watching it go, because it was literally top bins,
06:12 it was top corner.
06:13 Everything about it, it's the way he moves it onto his left foot,
06:16 it's the way he strikes the ball, it's the noise he makes when he hits the ball,
06:19 it's the noise when it hits the net, everything about it is perfect.
06:22 And then it's the limbs, the Wolves fans are right there going into the corner,
06:24 it was the perfect scenario.
06:25 Your away fans went bonk.
06:27 Oh, we got bonked.
06:28 I went bonk.
06:29 We went what?
06:30 I love it.
06:31 And yeah, a superb goal.
06:33 His first Premier League goal, his first Wolves goal,
06:35 but I don't know if you remember, I forget who it was against,
06:37 but we saw this last season when he was on loan at Sheffield United,
06:40 he scored an absolute bouncer from outside the area,
06:43 so he's got this in his locker.
06:44 It was a magnificent goal, well worth your first Wolves goal,
06:47 your first Premier League goal,
06:49 and Tommy Dawes taking his chance in the last two games, absolutely.
06:52 £53 million for Mateus Nunez, four point how much?
06:54 Four point three.
06:55 Four point three for?
06:56 Option.
06:57 Which are they going to take?
06:58 Wolves are going to take it.
06:59 It's not like Manchester City can pull him back.
07:01 If Wolves want to take that option, they're taking the option,
07:03 and they're taking the option.
07:04 Which is, by the way, is very much undervalued, what it is.
07:07 It was, not officially, but unofficially,
07:10 all at the same time while Nunez's deal to City was going through,
07:13 City, you know, gave Wolves a little favour to try and get that deal through,
07:16 and it's very much an undervalued option, which they are guaranteed to take.
07:19 And Wolves didn't...
07:20 I assume that happens to him in Gothenburg, but let's hope not.
07:22 Wolves didn't sit back there and just try and soak up
07:25 and try and get them back in a replay.
07:26 They were still on the offence, they were still working,
07:28 they were still lively, they were still dangerous.
07:30 Yeah, and Mateus Cunha, again, we speak about him a lot,
07:32 but I think he was, again, at the heart of that.
07:34 So good in the transition, so good at carrying the ball,
07:37 worked incredibly hard.
07:38 He got a few decisions against him today,
07:40 and he's very emotional as a human being, you know.
07:42 He can't hide his disappointment, and Gary O'Neill, he's on the side,
07:45 always constantly trying to get him focused.
07:47 But that's a little bit of a...
07:49 You know, you will take that if you get the kind of performances out of him,
07:52 and at the moment Wolves are getting that.
07:53 I think he's a brilliant player, and it's not just him.
07:55 Neto, you mentioned.
07:56 I thought Stradivar did okay.
07:57 Belagard, very workmanlike, you know, tried really hard.
08:01 Didn't maybe get in the best positions all the time,
08:03 but carried the ball fairly well.
08:05 Tommy Doyle in midfield, especially after Gerald Gomez went off,
08:08 I thought he did really well holding the foot on his own, basically,
08:11 although a couple of players dropped him when necessary.
08:13 A really good team display.
08:15 That's my biggest takeaway, and the resilience,
08:17 to come back and earn a replay, and well-deserved a replay as well.
08:21 Yeah, I know, well-deserved a replay, in spite, as I've just tweeted,
08:25 of some shocking officiating, not just at the beginning of the game,
08:27 but at the end of the game.
08:28 Bizarre, really.
08:29 I mean, Jose Sarr made a decent save towards the end of the game.
08:32 There was an incident with Lewis Potter and Samedo.
08:34 Lewis Potter's literally got his throat wrapped around Nelson Samedo.
08:38 I mean, his hands wrapped around Nelson Samedo's throat.
08:41 Yellow card.
08:43 Everybody can't believe it.
08:44 It goes to VAR.
08:45 They upheld the decision.
08:46 Always go with the on-field call.
08:47 And it just--it was a bizarre game,
08:50 and the fact that Wolves have come out of this so, so well,
08:53 and like you say, just this team ethic.
08:56 They've got so much character,
08:58 even when you've got to completely change it in eight minutes into a game.
09:01 You completely change your game plan,
09:03 and to do it, to do it so well, and to be the better side
09:06 over 90 plus four or five minutes is quite sensational.
09:10 Yeah, just before I answer that, one more quick criticism of the officials.
09:14 You know I like a pop when I can.
09:16 You've seen it happen, the Lewis Potter and Samedo incident happening live.
09:21 I was down on my laptop when it happened. I missed it.
09:24 Still right now, this is, what, 20 minutes after full-time?
09:27 I've still not seen a replay.
09:29 What VAR was checking, there was nothing in the ground.
09:31 There was no announcement to say VAR was checking anything.
09:34 There was no replays on our TVs.
09:36 Not only was there no replays, there was no VAR confirmation as well.
09:39 We had nothing.
09:40 Nothing.
09:41 So I can't give an opinion on it right now because I haven't seen it.
09:43 I'm taking you and what all the Wolves fans on Twitter are telling me
09:46 is that you grabbed him by the throat.
09:47 To show you, real time.
09:48 Yeah, you know I'm all right.
09:49 And if that's the case, that is a red card.
09:52 That's the thumbnail.
09:53 That's the thumbnail.
09:54 I like it. You're learning well.
09:55 If that's the case, it's a red card.
09:57 Instead, both players have been booked and life goes on.
10:00 I think it's a real sad state of affairs,
10:03 the way in which VAR and refereeing is being conducted at the moment.
10:07 It's incredibly poor.
10:08 The communication is incredibly poor and I can't see it getting any better.
10:11 Moving on from that.
10:12 Moving on from that.
10:13 Completely agree.
10:14 Resilience, again, I've mentioned.
10:15 Character, all of these kind of words.
10:16 This team comes together, fights, and is in a really strong place right now.
10:20 Now, they've got few numbers.
10:22 They're having to be patched up and go out there and play again.
10:24 Now, they're lucky they've got a break now before the Brighton game.
10:27 Before the Brentford game.
10:29 I keep forgetting about the Brentford replay.
10:30 So, we're here.
10:31 No, no, no, you're nearly here.
10:34 The Brentford replay.
10:36 Probably a week on Tuesday, a week on Wednesday.
10:38 So, the flight to Abu Dhabi, they're going to have a week away.
10:40 Yeah, they're back on the 14th from Abu Dhabi,
10:42 and then it'll probably be a few days after that,
10:43 two or three days after that, will be the Brentford game.
10:45 Look, obviously, Giao Gomez is now suspended.
10:48 We're expecting three games.
10:50 Wolves could appeal that.
10:51 I don't think anything will happen without appeal.
10:53 Probably not.
10:54 I mean, again, we'll ask Gary Neill if they are going to appeal.
10:56 I would be surprised if they don't, to be honest.
10:58 But, at the same time, I'd be surprised if it gets changed or overturned.
11:02 So, let's say he's going to miss three games.
11:04 Now, they've got this replay.
11:05 That will be one game will be the replay.
11:07 Now, if they beat Brentford, he will miss the Brighton game for certain.
11:11 So, he's definitely missing the Brighton game in the Premier League.
11:13 If they beat Brentford in the replay, then he will miss both the FA Cup replay,
11:17 and he will miss the fourth round tie.
11:19 Which is the last weekend in January before Wolves play United.
11:22 United on February 1st.
11:24 And if they lose to Brentford, then they will miss the United game.
11:26 Exactly.
11:27 So, unless an appeal is successful.
11:29 But, let's not focus on negatives.
11:31 Focus on the positives.
11:32 In that Tommy Doyle, right now, if Lamina is back, and hopefully everything goes well with him,
11:36 Tommy Doyle has earned his place to keep that starting XI birth.
11:40 So, him and Lamina will hopefully start the game together if he's back.
11:43 I agree.
11:44 It's just very frustrating.
11:45 It is.
11:46 Now, I've been looking behind me, actually, a couple of times.
11:49 And that's because I was looking for Sascha Kulajic.
11:51 Who is not warming down with the rest of the team.
11:53 Unusual substitute tonight.
11:55 And, of course, if you've read or seen Liam's tweet, or read the article,
11:58 it looks like a deal has been agreed, and he's going to be going to Germany on loan.
12:02 Yes. Verbally agreed.
12:03 Joining Eintracht Frankfurt on loan until the end of the season.
12:07 No option to buy.
12:09 There's been a lot of reports about Frankfurt being keen for an option to buy being included.
12:12 But, as far as I understand, that's not been agreed as it stands.
12:15 It's still yet to go through.
12:17 We imagine it will take a few days at the very least, but we'll see how the next few days develop.
12:21 But he is, as it stands, as you've seen, didn't come on today either.
12:24 Set to go on loan.
12:25 And it's been a slight change of tact from Wolves.
12:28 So, initially, they were absolutely adamant at the start of this window
12:32 they will not let him go anywhere until they've got a replacement.
12:35 Although they have now got this replay, they've got one extra game.
12:38 They only have one Premier League game this month, the Brighton game.
12:42 They may obviously have another FA Cup game after the replay as well.
12:45 But they only have one Premier League game.
12:47 And Wolves have decided to take that risk and allow him to go before a replacement comes in.
12:51 The reason for that is to allow him to go and play, have game time, get settled back in Germany.
12:56 And secondly, which I would imagine is probably one of the bigger reasons for Sascha personally,
13:02 is that his wife is heavily pregnant and is going to give birth in probably the next few weeks or so.
13:06 And I think they're eager to get over there and get settled and be in a position for that to happen.
13:11 Quite a big change, obviously, in their personal lives.
13:13 So I can understand it from a personal and a footballing point of view, but it's certainly a risk for Wolves.
13:19 Their numbers aren't great. Fabio has already gone on loan to Rangers.
13:22 They haven't got a lot of options. Nathan Fraser has currently got a small knock at the moment as well.
13:28 And albeit Klug's on him on loan, he's probably not going anywhere in the short term.
13:32 That will probably be one that drags on in the end of January.
13:36 I mean, Bellagio played kind of up top tonight.
13:39 He would have probably put in a little bit more if we'd seen him.
13:41 So, look, if they've had 11 men, it's interesting, wasn't it?
13:44 You've got to wish Sascha well.
13:46 Whether he's got a long-term future at Wolves, I think it's probably debatable at this point, would you say?
13:51 Yeah, I think debatable is a good way of putting it.
13:52 He's certainly not kicked on from coming back from his injury.
13:55 It doesn't seem quite comfortable, maybe mentally, particularly with an injury like that and how serious it was.
14:03 Maybe it's difficult for him.
14:05 I think Wolves' hope, whether this is optimistic or not, is that he'll go there, score goals, play regularly and come back and play for Wolves again.
14:13 But it very much depends on his next few months to go.
14:16 Brentford at the end of December, Brentford in early January, Brentford in the middle of January, Brentford come across in the league in February.
14:22 You're buzzing, yeah?
14:23 I mean, I won't be there, so it's fine.
14:26 You missed the buzzing reference, Bees. It's OK, it's fine.
14:28 Brentford 1, Wolves 1 for the first match reaction.
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