Junior Kroupi and Alex Scott were on target to earn Bournemouth a hard-fought 2-0 victory over Wolves at Molineux.
Bournemouth had to work hard for their third league victory in four which compounded basement side Wolves to a first home defeat in 2026.
Wolves did not do a lot wrong in the first period until Andre’s error led to 19-year-old Kroupi firing in his eighth goal of the campaign.
The home side were unable to break down the Bournemouth defence but it was not for the want of trying as Djordje Petrovic was forced into a string of second-half saves to keep their lead intact while Joao Gomes hit the post.
The Cherries have not enjoyed the best of times away from their own patch but Scott sunk a late dagger into Wolves to seal all three points and their first win on the road since a 1-0 victory over Tottenham in August.
Wolves’ bright start to 2026 has seemingly come to a crashing end and they took another step towards relegation with back-to-back defeats and their 18th defeat of the season.
Wolves made a bright start and thought they had the opener when Mateus Mane nodded in from Rodrigo Gomes’ cross but the assistant referee adjudged the latter to have slightly mis-timed his run.
It looked like the hosts had lost their fear at Molineux following recent performances – Petrovic was forced into making the first save of the contest, albeit in simple fashion to catch Mane’s strike from distance.
Wolves probably had the edge in the opening half hour but were cruelly punished with their first error.
The move started with Andre gifting possession back to Bournemouth in a dangerous area and Scott had the Wolves defence backtracking before giving it to Amine Adli and he teed up Kroupi who sent a lovely dipping finish over Jose Sa’s despairing dive.
The goal opened up Wolves’ soft underbelly and handed the control over to Bournemouth who could have made it two but Sa scrambled to deny Adli.
The Cherries started quickly following the interval and could have made it two inside seconds courtesy of Alex Jimenez’s lung-bursting run but his effort was batted behind by Sa.
Mane remained a shining light for Wolves who earned a free-kick following a tricky run but Hee Chan Hwang sent one straight into the hands of Petrovic.
Wolves’ best chance of the game arrived just after the hour mark when Hugo Bueno found Tolu Arokodare inside the area who aimed straight to Petrovic from point-blank range.
Bournemouth fans got to see their new signing, Rayan, who was introduced with a quarter of the game to go for his debut after signing from Vasco Da Gama this week.
Jorgen Strand Larsen has been the middle of a transfer saga with interest from Crystal Palace and he had a chance to make what could have been a final contribution but he aimed harmlessly wide from a good position in the area.
Wolves continued to knock on the door but received no change, Yerson Mosquera thought he nodded Wolves level but the upright came to Bournemouth’s rescue this time.
Rayan was impressive off the bench and he had the reward for a wonderful cameo when he put it on a plate for Scott who finished emphatically from inside the six-yard box which sparked a mass exodus.
