Manchester United powered into the Premier League’s top six with a commanding 4-1 win at Molineux, piling further misery on bottom-placed Wolves, who slumped to an eighth consecutive defeat and edged closer to what already feels like inevitable relegation.
Bruno Fernandes struck twice, while Bryan Mbeumo and Mason Mount added goals in a dominant second-half display that exposed Wolves’ fragility, lack of confidence and inability to withstand sustained pressure. Jean-Ricner Bellegarde briefly dragged the hosts level on the stroke of half-time, but Rob Edwards’ side were overwhelmed after the interval as the gulf in quality, belief and execution became impossible to ignore.
United entered the night knowing victory would lift them into sixth, and their early play reflected that urgency. Ruben Amorim’s side attacked with freedom and intent, carving through Wolves repeatedly. The breakthrough arrived on 25 minutes when Matheus Cunha slipped Fernandes into the box and the United captain bundled a low finish into the corner. Yet despite their superiority, United conceded a sloppy equaliser in added time at the end of the first half. Wolves broke forward and Bellegarde finished confidently from a D. Møller Wolfe pass, sending Molineux into brief, hopeful celebration.
But any momentum Wolves gained evaporated almost immediately after the restart. United emerged sharper, more ruthless and determined not to squander another lead. Within six minutes of the second half beginning, Mbeumo restored their advantage, meeting Diogo Dalot’s cross with a neat finish. That goal deflated Wolves, whose response grew increasingly ragged as their confidence drained away.
United surged forward again on 62 minutes, Fernandes turning provider with a precise through ball that released Mason Mount. Timing his run perfectly, Mount fired past the keeper to make it 3-1 and, in truth, end the contest. The midfielder, named Sky’s Player of the Match, put in one of his finest displays in a United shirt, linking play intelligently and driving the team forward in advanced areas.
The final blow came late on from the penalty spot. With Wolves disorganised and exposed, United won a spot kick that Fernandes converted with ease on 82 minutes, capping both his own excellent performance and a much-needed display of attacking fluency from Amorim’s men. United finished with 27 shots—more than in any Premier League game under their manager—and looked full of confidence ahead of a difficult winter schedule.
For Wolves, the night brought only more pain and further evidence of how grim their situation has become. With just two points from 15 games, they sit 13 points adrift of safety and have equalled their longest losing streak in club history, last reached in the early 1980s. Supporters voiced their frustration loudly, directing anger towards the club’s ownership and booing players as they were substituted. Molineux, once a fortress, is now shrouded in tension and resignation.
Rob Edwards accepted responsibility and frustration in his post-match interview, admitting his side “shot themselves in the foot” repeatedly. “We gave the ball to them—‘there you go, Man Utd’,” he said. “It’s impossible to win a game of football that way. There’s a nervousness, a lack of confidence. These players are human beings, and they feel it.”
Wolves created little of substance after equalising, managing only a handful of attempts as United dominated the ball. Even former hero Matheus Cunha, now thriving in red, looked determined to punish his old club, registering eight shots himself.
For Manchester United, the win signals progress under Amorim and a growing cohesion in their attacking play, particularly with Fernandes and Mount both influential. But for Wolves, the season already looks perilously close to beyond repair. With history, form and morale all stacked against them, their fight for survival is slipping further away with every passing week.
Unless something extraordinary happens, Wolves appear destined for the Championship. United, meanwhile, continue their climb—with confidence rising just as Wolves’ evaporates.
