Charly Alcaraz's 80th-Minute Winner Sends Everton to Carabao Cup Fourth Round
Charly Alcaraz stepped off the bench and into the spotlight, rifling home an 80th-minute winner to edge Everton past a heavily rotated Wolves side and into the Carabao Cup fourth round with a 1-0 victory at Goodison Park.
He had been on the pitch for barely three minutes.
One touch to settle, another to shape, then a vicious, curling strike from inside the box that finally broke Wolves’ resistance and kept Everton’s unbeaten start to the season intact. For Alcaraz, it was only his second goal for the club, arriving 13 months after his first – also in this competition.
Everton grind it out
This was no smash-and-grab. Everton earned it.
Up against a Wolves team showing nine changes from the weekend win at Sheffield United, David Moyes’ side controlled long spells and created the clearer chances. The Championship visitors offered little going forward for much of the night, yet clung on through a mix of dogged defending and inspired goalkeeping.
Wolves handed a debut to former Everton keeper Joao Virginia, and he relished the stage against his old club. Just before the interval, he produced the standout moment of the first half, reacting superbly to claw away Thierno Barry’s close-range header in stoppage time. It was a save that drew gasps around Goodison and underlined why Everton had to work so hard for their breakthrough.
At the other end, Wolves’ attacking plan took an early hit. Raul Jimenez, the match-winner at Bramall Lane last weekend, was given a start but limped off midway through the first half with an injury, cutting short his chance to build on that momentum. His departure blunted Wolves’ threat even further.
Goalkeepers in the spotlight
The second half opened with a rare Wolves chance. Adam Armstrong, on for the injured Jimenez, finally tested Jordan Pickford with the visitors’ first shot on target of the game. The Everton keeper was equal to it, getting down smartly to preserve the deadlock.
Virginia, though, remained the busier of the two. As Everton pushed harder, Brennan Johnson came off the bench and almost made the difference, only to see Virginia block his effort and keep Wolves alive yet again.
The pressure finally told.
Everton worked the ball into the box, Alcaraz found a pocket of space, and this time Virginia had no answer. The substitute’s shot was too clean, too fierce, bending beyond the keeper and into the corner. Goodison erupted.
Eyes on silverware
In the stands, UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham watched on alongside his Canadian counterpart Mark Carney, both noted Everton supporters, both on their feet as the ball hit the net. They saw a side that, under Moyes, refuses to let this unbeaten run slip quietly away.
Everton have not lifted a major trophy since 1995. Nights like this, edged by a single ruthless moment from the bench, keep that long, stubborn chase for silverware very much alive.
