Jimenez strike enlivens dull encounter
Burnley 1 v Wolverhampton Wanderers 1
How much is the way in which a football team plays a reflection of the character of its manager? I ask the question only inasmuch as Sean Dyche with his bald pate and stern demeanour looks like a no nonsense sort of chap and you could say that his team reflects that. Functional, resilient, well organised, yet rarely pleasing on the eye. And in that regard Burnley, though the BBC’s pundits for the evening claimed otherwise, form part of the blob; the fourteen or so teams whose premier league survival is never assured. True to form, up until Christmas as they languished in the bottom half of the table, the boys from East Lancashire looked set for a prolonged and debilitating relegation battle. Since when they have rallied in a way nobody could have predicted losing just one of thirteen games played. Yet the manner of this latest last gasp draw against visitors Wolves did little to dispel the blob moniker.
The game went something like this. Wolves bossed the first half, occasional flurries from Adama Traore and Daniel Podence, providing a hint of the unorthodox. Better use of the ball would have produced a greater tally of efforts on goal but overall the performance offered promise for the second half.
Burnley, however, had other ideas and for the first fifteen minutes following the restart they had Wolves on the back foot. Eventually the superior footballing ability of Joao Moutinho and Ruben Neves re-asserted control and following the drinks break on 69 minutes a beautiful flowing move saw Matt Doherty nearly head home with his first touch of the game.
Five minutes later Doherty was involved again when he collected the ball from Traore, following the latter’s powerful run which pierced the Burnley midfield. Instead of going outside, however, the Irishman turned into traffic where he was forced through a lack of options to fire somewhat half heartedly at the Burnley goal. No matter as his shot rebounded off a defender’s limb into the path of Raul Jimenez whose beautifully struck volley gave Nick Pope no chance. On the run of play it was more than Wolves deserved and for what remained of normal time the visitors controlled affairs.
It was now, in time added on, that their game management deserted them as Burnley made a last gasp effort to salvage a point. With two extra minutes played striker Chris Wood missed a sitter, keeper Rui Patricio all at sea. A minute later Wood was involved again this time attempting an overhead kick only for Matt Doherty to take evasive action and handle the ball. Referee Mike Dean had no hesitation in pointing to the spot and whilst the decision appeared harsh had it been the other way around we’d have been crying foul. Up stepped Wood to make amends for his earlier miss, with a clinical spot finish.
The Old Gold have now drawn 14 of their 36 league games which is equal to the number they have won. But, with two games to go, they find themselves on 56 points one shy of last season’s points tally. Which taking account of the stuttering start, the size of the squad and the number of games played is a considerable achievement.
Burnley: Pope 6, Bardsley 6, Tarkowski 6, Long 6, Pieters 6, Taylor 6 Sub Gudmundsson, Westwood 6, Brownhill 6 Sub Brady, McNeil 6, Wood 7, Rodriguez 5 Sub Vydra
Wolves: Patricio 6, Saiss 6, Coady 6, Boly 6, Vinagre 6 Sub Castro Otto, Neves 7, Moutinho 7, Traore 7, Jota 5 Sub Neto, Jimenez 7 Sub Dendoncker, Podence 6 Sub Doherty
Referee: Mike Dean 8
©Mark Brennand