Lopez’s Wolves Revival Gains Momentum with Impressive Victory
Lopez arrived back at Wolves this season with questions hanging over him. Last year he stumbled, lost his place and ended up back on loan at his former club to reset. That feels a long time ago now.
After opening his account in old gold in the League Cup earlier this month, he delivered again here, driving this game away from the hosts with a performance full of pace and conviction.
The tone of his afternoon was set with a ruthless first-half moment. Picking up the ball wide, Lopez simply burned past Preston defender Liam Lindsay, leaving him trailing. He carried the run all the way into the box and, with Daniel Iversen exposed, drilled a powerful finish beyond the goalkeeper. One burst, one clean strike, Wolves in front.
The visitors almost tightened their grip almost immediately. Raul Jimenez, back for a second spell at the club and eager to write a new chapter, ghosted into space and met a cross with an instinctive flick from close range. The idea was right, the execution just off, the ball skimming agonisingly the wrong side of the post.
That miss gave the home side a lifeline and they finally stirred. A spell of pressure forced Wolves back and nearly produced an equaliser. Callum Lang’s effort looked destined to level the game, only for Marshall Munetsi to read it and retreat to his line, where he rose to head the ball clear and preserve the lead.
Wolves still carried the sharper edge. Just before the interval, Rodrigo Gomes almost punished a loose moment on the edge of the area, drilling a low strike that seemed to be creeping inside the post. Iversen flung himself full length and, with a strong right hand, clawed it away. The scoreline stayed narrow, but the warning signs for the hosts were obvious.
Second Half
Second-half changes turned the contest into a test of nerve. Both managers went to their benches, the game finely poised, one goal either way likely to decide the direction of the afternoon.
The visitors struck first. The pressure finally told on 71 minutes when substitute Armstrong found the space the match had been threatening to offer him. A neat one-two with Jimenez sliced open the defence, Jimenez’s return ball rolling perfectly into his path inside the area. Armstrong didn’t hesitate, sweeping home to double Wolves’ lead and tilt the game firmly their way.
From there, Wolves played with a freedom that had been missing at the start of last season. Lopez, already brimming with confidence, stepped forward again. Another slick move pulled the hosts out of shape and, as the ball broke to him on the edge of the box with eight minutes left, he struck cleanly once more. Low, precise, and decisive. His second of the game, Wolves’ third on the day. A player who once looked on the fringes now stood at the centre of everything.
The hosts refused to fold completely and finally found a response. Thompson produced a composed finish of his own to make it 3-1, a reminder that Wolves could not drift through the final minutes. But the damage had been done long before, carved out by Lopez’s direct running, Jimenez’s link play and Armstrong’s sharp impact from the bench.
For Lopez, this was more than just another good outing. After last season’s struggle, he is no longer fighting to prove he belongs. Performances like this suggest he’s ready to drive Wolves’ season, not just survive it.
