EFL Championship REVIEW 14 Aug 2026: Late Jiménez Penalty Rescues Wolves Point Against Blackburn

Wolves' first Championship match in eight years brought a 2-2 draw with Blackburn at Molineux on Friday evening, a game that swung twice before Raúl Jiménez's 90th-minute penalty completed the comeback. Marshall Munetsi put César Peixoto's side ahead in the 18th minute, only for Sean McLoughlin to head Blackburn level on 27. Andri Gudjohnsen turned the game Rovers' way three minutes into the second half, before Jiménez's spot kick made it 2-2 with virtually the last kick.

Munetsi's opener came from open play rather than a set piece; Fox Sports credited the finish as assisted by F. Lopez. The Zimbabwe international had returned to Molineux this summer after a loan spell at Paris FC. Jiménez was making what Wolves' own preview described as his second Championship-level appearance for the club and duly stepped up to convert from the spot to deny Tony Mowbray's side a first win of the campaign.

The draw kept alive a run Wolves had been quoted as holding into the fixture: Blackburn had not beaten them in any of their previous nine meetings across competitions. Sky Sports recorded the Molineux attendance at 30,984 for Peixoto's first competitive league fixture in charge.

Peixoto had used his pre-match press conference to embrace the pressure of Wolves starting the season among the promotion favourites, saying, "It's normal, you have to embrace it. It's a positive pressure for me, I think it's important." Mowbray had struck a more cautious note about his squad's depth going into the trip, telling reporters, "We'd like some more additions. We'd like to give the team some help."