MX23RW : Tuesday, March 19 07:40:29| >> :600:850753:850753:

Bruno Lage dedicates Wolves win at Southampton to 'top man' Raul Jimenez

Bruno Lage dedicates Wolves win at Southampton to 'top man' Raul Jimenez
© Reuters
The Mexican lit up a largely forgettable affair on the south coast by emphatically ending a 336-day wait to hit the back of the net.

Wolves boss Bruno Lage hailed a special day for Raul Jimenez after the striker scored for the first time since suffering a career-threatening fractured skull to secure a 1-0 victory at Southampton.

Mexican Jimenez lit up a largely forgettable Premier League affair on the south coast by emphatically ending a 336-day wait to hit the net with a fine moment of individual magic in the 61st minute.

The 30-year-old – sporting protective head gear following his sickening clash with former Arsenal defender David Luiz last November – twice beat Saints defender Jan Bednarek, as well as leaving Mohammed Salisu on his backside, before calmly slotting beyond home goalkeeper Alex McCarthy in front of a jubilant away end.

"This three points and this goal go straight to Raul," said Lage.

"The fans did a fantastic job because they started in the first minutes singing his song. Everyone has given great confidence to him.

"With goals you give happiness to everyone. The face when you win is not the face when you lose. It was a special goal for Raul.

"I saw since the first day that he was a guy with a big ambition and hungry to come back to play to score goals for us.

"Today, it happened but he knows he needs to continue to score goals."

Jimenez feared he may never play again in the aftermath of his horrific head injury at the Emirates Stadium almost 10 months ago and only returned to the field at the start of this campaign.

His milestone strike was a rare piece of quality in the 250th top-flight fixture staged at St Mary's and gave Wolves only a second success of the campaign under their new boss.

Lage, who – like Jimenez – arrived at Molineux from Benfica, was equally impressed by the forward's desire to protect the slender lead.

"Raul is a good example, you can be a top player and a top man," said the Portuguese coach.

"Every time he's there working, working, working to do everything, to understand our way, to press, to help our team.

"And you see after he scored one goal, he stayed 20 minutes running and pressing and helping the team to defend the set-pieces. He's a top player, top man and he knows his job."

Southampton remain without a league win this campaign and faced jeers from sections of the disgruntled home support at full-time.

Nathan Redmond saw a first-half effort disallowed for offside but the hosts – who have now gone eight games without success dating back to last term – once again struggled to create as they failed to score for a third consecutive top-flight fixture.

Frustrated manager Ralph Hasenhuttl admits his goal-shy team have work to do.

"We are all disappointed because at the moment we are a little bit struggling to find the way to the back of the net," said the Austrian, who lost lethal striker Danny Ings to divisional rivals Aston Villa in the summer and replaced him with Adam Armstrong.

"We didn't get a lot of big chances against a team that is defending deep. We had a good moment in the second half, but you need a goal in that moment.

"It's not new that strikers coming to us need a bit of time to adapt to the Premier League. But it's not only strikers, we also have 10s coming in good situations to score.

"We have to do something more."

ID:465547:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:collect4817:

Click here for more stories about Raul Jimenez

Click here for more stories about Southampton

Collect / Create New Data
Share this article now:
Arsenal's Alexandre Lacazette celebrates scoring against AFC Wimbledon in the EFL Cup on September 22, 2021
Read Next:
Sunday's Premier League predictions including Arsenal vs. Tottenham Hotspur
>
Sports Mole Logo
Enter your email address to subscribe to Sports Mole's free daily transfer newsletter! Sent twice a day during the transfer window.
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Leeds UnitedLeeds38257670284282
2Leicester CityLeicester37264774334182
3Ipswich TownIpswich38249580493181
4Southampton36227773472673
5West Bromwich AlbionWest Brom381991059362366
6Norwich CityNorwich381871369541561
7Hull City371610115346758
8Coventry CityCoventry3715121059431657
9Preston North EndPreston37168134954-556
10Middlesbrough38166165352154
11Cardiff CityCardiff38165174351-853
12Sunderland38146184845348
13Watford381212145351248
14Bristol City38138174245-347
15Swansea CitySwansea381210164858-1046
16Millwall381110173650-1443
17Blackburn RoversBlackburn38119185164-1342
18Plymouth ArgylePlymouth381011175462-841
19Stoke CityStoke38118193553-1841
20Queens Park RangersQPR381010183650-1440
21Birmingham CityBirmingham38109194259-1739
22Huddersfield TownHuddersfield38815154261-1939
23Sheffield WednesdaySheff Weds38115223061-3138
24Rotherham UnitedRotherham38311243077-4720

Subscribe to our newsletter


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!