Wolves vs Leeds: Jesse Marsch’s men battled back from 2-0 down, with the help of Raul Jimenez’s red card, completing their comeback in stoppage time for a 3-2 victory at Molineux Stadium on Friday.
[ MORE: How to watch PL in USA ]
Jonny and Francisco Trincao staked Wolves to a 2-0 lead by halftime, and Leeds were lost at sea — not only behind on the scoreboard, but second-best in every conceivable way. Jimenez was shown his second yellow card shortly after the restart, and Leeds were back level within 13 minutes. The stoppage-time winner, which eventually came from Luke Ayling, felt inevitable when eight minutes of added time went up on the board.
The victory is monumental for Leeds (29 points), who now find themselves seven points clear of the the relegation zone, having played just one game more than 18th-place Watford. Suddenly, Brentford are just one point above in 15th, as are 14th-place Newcastle from there.
Wolves vs Leeds final score, stats, results
Final score: Wolves 2, Leeds 3
Goal scorers: Wolves (Jonny 26', Trincao 45'+10), Leeds (Harrison 63', Rodrigo 66', Ayling 90'+1)
Shots: Wolves 14, Leeds 15
Shots on target: Wolves 8, Leeds 6
Possession: Wolves 48%, Leeds 52%
3 things we learned - Wolves vs Leeds
1. Results all that matter for Marsch this season: Jesse Marsch undoubtedly has much larger long-term plans for Leeds than “scrape and claw our way to 17th place,” but that can all wait until this summer and next season. Four games into his Premier League career, and Marsch has guided his side to six points (2W-0D-2L) and dragged them farther from the relegation zone than they’ve been all season. Barring an incredible collapse down the stretch, Leeds appear set for a third season in the Premier League. It’s safe to say the American is doing quite well to ingratiate himself with his new supporters.
2. Another Bamford bummer: Patrick Bamford made just his third appearance since returning from a five-month injury absence, but lasted just 23 minutes before he was forced off with a new, or perhaps recurring, injury. Whether he misses additional days, weeks or months, this season will go down as a write-off campaign for Bamford, after scoring just two goals in nine appearances (only 560 minutes) across seven and a half months months thus far. After scoring 17 goals in Leeds’ first season in the Premier League, Bamford entered season no. 2 with massive expectations to improve upon a 9th-place finish. Instead, his season has been lost to injuries and Leeds are in very real danger of being relegated.
3. Carnage at Elland Road: Bamford was only one of six players to leave Friday’s game due to either injury or red card. Ruben Neves was forced off two minutes after Bamford. Diego Llorente followed in the 40th minute and Mateusz Klich joined him in first-half stoppage time. Eight minutes into the second half, Illan Meslier and Raul Jimenez collided as they both made a play for a 50-50 ball. Meslier left the game with an injury, and Jimenez was sent off. That’s five injury subs and a red card, for anyone keeping score at home As much as the injuries will hamper Leeds in the coming days and weeks, the red card was undeniably the turning point of Friday’s game, and might also be the same for their season and Premier League status.
Man of the Match: Luke Ayling - The right back was unlucky to not score earlier in the game, but as he was a consistent threat while tucking inside from the wing. He eventually got the winning goal, and a warm embrace from injured leader Kalvin Phillips, who sprinted down the end line to celebrate as soon as the ball hit the back of the net.
Wolves vs Leeds highlights
Jonny Otto slots past Jose Sa for the opener (goal video)
<iframe src="https://vplayer.nbcsports.com/p/BxmELC/nbcsports_embed/select/media/fVuNrVi4kAWA?form=html” style="width:624px; height:351px” frameBorder="0" seamless="seamless” allow="autoplay; encrypted-media” allowFullScreen></iframe>
Francisco Trincao doubles the lead for high-flying Wolves (goal video)
[ MORE: How to watch Premier League in USA ]