Hwang Hee-chan ended his four-month goal drought to help inspire Wolves to a 2-1 victory over relegation-threatened Luton Town at Molineux on Saturday. 

Hwang opened the scoring late in the first half at the end of a lightning counterattack, his strike deflecting off Teden Mengi and nestling in the bottom corner.

A clever set-piece routine allowed Wolves to double their lead after 50 minutes as Toti Gomes nodded in from Mario Lemina's cross, though Luton set up a grandstand finish when Carlton Morris fired home.

However, they failed to find an equaliser in the final 10 minutes plus stoppage time and stay 18th, one point adrift of Nottingham Forest in 17th. Wolves, meanwhile, move into the top half with 46 points.

Luton started brightly and Ross Barkley called Jose Sa into action just five minutes in, but the Wolves goalkeeper dived to his right to palm his strike away from danger.

Hwang then made a superb run in behind as Wolves showed their teeth, but he shot down the throat of Thomas Kaminski after latching onto Lemina's throughball.

Luton should have gone ahead after 39 minutes as Jordan Clark teed up Morris, but he could only power his header into the hands of Sa.

They were made to pay just 18 seconds later as Matheus Cunha picked out Hwang inside the box. The Wolves forward cut back onto his right before shooting low, and his deflected effort found its way into the bottom-right corner.

Five minutes after the break, Lemina was found on the edge of the box from a short corner, and his sensational first-time cross allowed Toti to send a bullet header into the net.

Nelson Semedo should have made it three for Gary O’Neil’s side as he found himself one-on-one with Kaminski, but the Luton goalkeeper rushed off his line to make a strong stop. 

Luton pulled one back after 80 minutes as Alfie Doughty’s cross was nodded back into a dangerous area by Reece Burke, and Morris pounced to volley home.

However, Wolves clung on through six added minutes to end their six-match winless run.

Hwang ends long wait

It’s four months to the day since Hwang last found the net in the Premier League, with injuries and international duty frustrating him since he scored twice against Brentford on December 27th. 

He looked back to something approaching his best on Saturday, working the channels effectively and settling Wolves' nerves with his opener, which came after a strong start from Luton. 

The victory takes Wolves into the top half ahead of Bournemouth facing Brighton on Sunday, though they remain some seven points adrift of the top seven and a potential European place.

Luton’s survival hopes dented 

Luton could have climbed out of the relegation zone with three points against Wolves, but they remain in 18th place, one point behind Forest and just one clear of Burnley.

Some soft defending cost the Hatters on Saturday, and they have kept just two clean sheets in their 35 Premier League games this campaign.

With just three games remaining, Rob Edwards will be desperately hoping his side can turn things around after a tricky run, their defeat at Molineux making it three losses in a row.  

Manager Rob Edwards admitted to feeling “drained” after Luton scored a 90th-minute winner to come from behind to beat Bournemouth 2-1 at Kenilworth Road and take a huge step in the direction of Premier League survival.

Carlton Morris’s goal at the death – which was knocked in at the far post from substitute Cauley Woodrow’s cross – capped a strong second-half display from the home side and moved them level on points with 17th-place Nottingham Forest, who have a game in hand.

That footnote felt insignificant at the end as the stadium rocked with the euphoria of a first league win since Brighton were beaten here late in January.

“I’m quite drained,” said Edwards. “It’s been a tough period and it’s going to continue to be that way.

“It feels great. It’s hard to win a Premier League game, especially for us. We’ve got to find more in the remaining games.

“We put pressure on the lads after (losing against) Tottenham and Arsenal, but I thought we deserved it. We showed character and quality after going 1-0 down.”

Bournemouth had dominated the first half and struck the woodwork twice, first when James Tavernier’s free-kick crashed back off the post then again when Justin Kluivert hit the same upright with a low shot.

Luton were lacklustre and showed little in attack but inertia, but they emerged after the break with renewed life and went close through Morris, who drew a two fine saves from goalkeeper Neto.

Yet they fell behind almost immediately, Tavernier taking the ball off Kluivert in a central position and – after letting it run across his body – arrowing it into the corner.

At that point Luton might have caved, but instead they found renewed fight. Jordan Clark levelled after 73 minutes, finishing off a move he had started with a powerful run and lashing the ball home first time.

A point might have been fair, but Morris met Woodrow’s cross at the death to nick all three.

Edwards added: “It’s big. It’s hard at the moment with the number of key players missing. But that’s why I love those lads in there. They’ve given us everything, they’ve tried so hard.

“Jordan Clark, who’s got his first Premier League goal today, is like so many of our lads who have fought really hard over their footballing journey so far to get here. They don’t want to give this up.

“Just because we’ve won the game today, we’re not out of it, clearly. There’s a long, long way to go, but we’re still in the fight.”

Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola, who had seen his team win four out of five in the league, reflected on a game that got away from them after the break.

“When you lose at the end, it’s hard,” he said. “It’s been the opposite in the last few games we’ve played.

“We were comfortable for the first 60 minutes, but in the second half it was difficult to find the spaces we’d been finding in the first half.”

Unai Emery hailed Ollie Watkins as one of the best strikers in Europe after his double helped Aston Villa to a dramatic 3-2 win over Luton at Kenilworth Road.

A header in the 89th minute from substitute Lucas Digne ensured Villa won for the third game in a row in the Premier League to stay five points clear of Tottenham in the race for Champions League qualification.

Emery’s side were comfortably on top in the first half and went in at the break with a commanding two-goal lead given to them by Watkins’ brace.

Luton struck back, seemingly re-energised by the looming prospect of a fourth straight league defeat, with goals from Tahith Chong and Carlton Morris, but Digne’s late intervention settled the contest in Villa’s favour.

However, it was the contribution of Watkins that was singled out by Emery.

“Fantastic, brilliant,” he said of his team’s top scorer, who now has 21 for the season.

“He’s an example for other players. Every day working hard, every day trying to learn more.

“His mentality, to increase his level, practising and practising on the training ground. His commitment to work in the tactical areas we are planning every match.

“He’s scoring, he’s getting chances, he’s assisting, defending set-pieces. He has been available to play 90 minutes more or less, keeping fit to play a lot. He’s fantastic.

“But he needs his team-mates as well to help him. We are a team. We have to try to get our performances through the team. With the commitment he’s showing, for everyone he is an example.

“For mentality, it’s difficult to find a player better than him. But his skill is also a high level.

“He wants to learn every day, to increase his level. Of course, his first objective is scoring goals, but then as well, tactically, his work has been fantastic. Understanding, being clever.”

Asked if Watkins was one of the best in Europe, Emery said: “Yes, of course, he’s showing. The Premier League is the toughest league maybe in the world.

“But as a person he’s humble. He avoids the ego changing him. He’s fantastic as a person and as a professional.”

Luton boss Edwards, whose team are four points adrift of safety with 12 games to play, reflected on a result he found difficult to take.

“Bitterly disappointed,” he said. “The goals were avoidable, all three of them, as they always are.

“There was so much to like about the performance. Villa are so organised and a good team and it is not easy to score goals against them. They can hit you hard with counter-attacks or control the game.

“They are a very good team, but I thought we dominated the second half and had an outstanding performance.”

Aston Villa maintained their push for a top-four finish in the Premier League as substitute Lucas Digne headed an 89th-minute winner to defeat Luton 3-2 at Kenilworth Road.

Unai Emery’s side looked to have thrown away two points, allowing Luton to fight back from two goals down in the second half, until Digne arrived at the far post to turn Moussa Diaby’s deep cross past Thomas Kaminski and into the net, in front of ecstatic away fans.

The hosts had fought back bravely to level the game at 2-2, Tahith Chong and Carlton Morris scoring after a brace from Ollie Watkins had seemingly put Villa in control at the break.

Defeat for Rob Edwards’ side was their fourth in a row, whilst Villa maintained their five-point lead over Tottenham in the race for the Champions League.

Kaminski had been the home side’s hero in the opening quarter, first diving full stretch to turn away a right-footer from Jacob Ramsey, then yet more acrobatically when Watkins got in down the right and lashed one towards the near post, beaten behind brilliantly by the goalkeeper.

Yet his endeavours were rendered in vain a minute later when from the resulting corner Watkins headed Villa in front. Leon Bailey’s ball arched invitingly into the six-yard box where the Villa striker had got free, and he used the space afford by slack Luton marking to rise up and direct the ball coolly past Kaminski into the top corner for his 20th goal of the season.

Villa lost the influential Ramsey to injury on the half-hour mark, but it did little to break their confident stride. Watkins almost made it two 10 minutes before the break, standing up Teden Mengi on the right before knocking it round the defender and cracking a low shot off Kaminski’s far post.

Luton had been warned about Watkins’ pace in behind but their high line continued to allow him space, and soon he had made good on his threat of a second.

The defence had pushed up towards near the centre circle when Douglas Luiz lumped one over the top for Villa’s top scorer to stride on to. With no one in orange near him, he made light work of clipping Villa’s second goal in off the post. VAR checked for offside, but Watkins had timed his run perfectly.

Edwards’ side emerged with renewed urgency after the break and the home support responded in kind, roaring their team on as they began to find success attacking down the right with the lively Issa Kabore.

A goal to give them hope arrived after 66 minutes. Villa failed to deal with a corner, forcing Matt Cash into a desperate headed clearance off the line. Still the defence dithered, and as the ball ricocheted back into the six-yard box, Chong pounced to thump it home.

Suddenly Villa were tottering. Six minutes later, their lead was gone and it was the simplest Luton goal.

Alfie Doughty hit a huge, raking free-kick from near the touchline which sailed over everyone to the back post. Arriving unmarked with time to pick his spot was Morris, who timed his run expertly and with barely an upwards glance swept it beyond Martinez.

Luton were now rampant and an almost identical move gave Morris the chance to win it, fractionally failing to make the required contact as the ball was flashed across goal from Doughty’s free-kick.

They looked at least to have done enough for a point, but then came Digne’s dramatic intervention at the death to break Luton hearts and keep Villa in the Champions League driving seat.

Burnley boss Vincent Kompany has told his players the latest VAR controversy to hurt their survival chances shows they must rely on themselves as they cannot expect favours from anyone else.

Kompany was fuming after Carlton Morris’s controversial stoppage-time equaliser cost them victory in Friday’s 1-1 draw with relegation rivals Luton.

Morris headed into an empty net in the second minute of time added on but only after Elijah Adebayo had blocked off Burnley goalkeeper James Trafford as he looked to gather Alfie Doughty’s cross.

Burnley had led since Zeki Amdouni’s 36th-minute strike and appeared on course for only their second home win of the season, one that would put them one point behind the Hatters and two behind 17th-placed Everton, who host Aston Villa on Sunday, but instead the result left them four points adrift of safety.

Kompany’s frustration was obvious in a post-match press conference as he described the situation as a “joke” and pointed to previous incidents at Aston Villa, Nottingham Forest and Bournemouth where refereeing decisions have cost the Clarets.

But while Burnley will make their feelings known on the issue, Kompany said he and his players must focus on themselves.

“We’ll keep focusing on our performance and to do what we have to do to give ourselves a chance to stay up,” he said when asked if such decisions were going to cost Burnley come the end of the campaign.

“At this moment in time, I don’t want to draw these types of conclusions because it’s admitting defeat and I won’t do it. But it has to rally us if anything, rally us to be more united, more together and more willing to go the extra yard and not expect any favours from anyone.”

VAR controversies have come to the fore this season, and Kompany said there needed to be “better mechanisms” in place to deal with to the system.

“I love this sport and I want to fight for it,” he said. “I wouldn’t want to be in the referee’s shoes nowadays, I have sympathy for them. I think there’s a lot of new elements now and scrutiny and it’s difficult for them to even come to a logical decision.

“Them missing something that everyone sees like this is probably the result of the general confusion around a lot of decisions. I have sympathy but I have also a lot of frustration right now.”

Luton boss Rob Edwards admitted he would have been upset to have been on the wrong end of the decision but he and his players could celebrate a point that was their seventh from the last four league games and which moved them level with Everton.

Although Burnley had the better chances in the game, it was Luton who had more of the ball and Edwards said it showed the progression they have made.

“What pleased me most was the performance,” he said. “We’d never have been able to come here and dominate a game like that. We were really good with the ball and I loved a lot of that…

“We have got a fighting chance, it’s a fact. We’re performing really well, we’re in good form. I don’t think anyone can deny that and we are getting points. In the last four games we’ve got points from three of them and we’ve performed well so of course we’ve got a fighting chance.”

Vincent Kompany fumed over the decision to allow Luton’s controversial stoppage-time equaliser as Burnley were denied a crucial three points in a 1-1 draw against their relegation rivals at Turf Moor.

Carlton Morris headed into an empty net after Burnley goalkeeper James Trafford was blocked by Elijah Adebayo as he tried to claim Alfie Doughty’s cross, but referee Tony Harrington was unmoved and VAR Peter Bankes upheld the goal following a lengthy check.

After Zeki Amdouni’s 36th-minute goal, Burnley had been moments away from celebrating a win that would have put them a point behind Luton and within touching distance of safety, but instead it was the Hatters who moved level on points with 17th-placed Everton.

“It’s a joke, a joke,” the Burnley boss said. “I will start by saying 100 per cent respect and credit to Luton, they’re a terrific outfit, what they do as a club, the players, managers, they deserve whatever is coming to them, a really good club.

“In that phase I’ve just got to defend my team, my club. I don’t understand how we can go through this phase and those events and not come to the conclusion it’s a foul.

“The striker, good luck to him, his first look is at the goalkeeper, he has a look and takes a couple of steps back and backs into him, clears a way for his colleague, then has a look at the referee to see if he gets away with it. The ball goes in, none of the Luton players celebrate, nobody.”

Kompany pointed to a series of controversial decisions that have gone against his side this season.

“For those that where there for Aston Villa, Bournemouth, Forest, how many times is it going to keep happening? A couple of lines in the newspaper and on we go. Consequences? Zero,” he said.

“Maybe we get a bit on one of the specialist things where they explain the referee decision but we won’t spend too much time on it because we need to talk about Manchester United and Liverpool. And we move on…

“It’s against my nature because I would like to congratulate Luton and tell my players what we have to do to improve. I’m shocked.

“I’m disappointed but if you know me tomorrow the only people I will blame is ourselves, what can we do better? But hopefully it will balance out and then we’ll get a lot of angry managers from the opposition when it does.”

Luton boss Rob Edwards admitted he would have been disappointed to have been on Burnley’s end of the decision, but did his best to argue there had been no foul.

“Obviously I’m really pleased to get a point,” he said. “In the end that’s nothing less than we deserved. We were excellent. We dominated large spells of the game. In the first half we dominated and looked a threat. In the second half we blocked things up a bit more made it difficult to get behind…

“We showed a lot of control without hurting them but we kept going, the team doesn’t give in and we found a way, whatever way it was.

“It’s difficult. VAR is there to show if a decision is blatantly wrong and I don’t think it is blatantly wrong. But I can understand their frustration. There is contact there with James Trafford but if it hadn’t have been given I would have been frustrated because it was pretty minimal.”

Burnley boss Vincent Kompany expressed his frustration after his side were held 1-1 at home by a controversial late goal from Carlton Morris.

Morris headed into the net in stoppage time following a collision between his fellow Hatters forward Elijah Adebayo and Clarets goalkeeper James Trafford, with referee Tony Harrington unmoved and the effort standing after a lengthy check from VAR.

Kompany told TNT Sports: “I don’t get it anymore. If we get a foul against us that is given as a penalty that is as soft as it is against Aston Villa (the 3-2 loss on December 30), then what is this here?

“There’s a clear attempt to stop the goalkeeper getting up. It doesn’t take anything away from the performance by Luton, I thought they were incredible today. But it’s just a moment there where the referee has to get it right.

“I think any ex-pro will say they understand what the striker has been doing in this case, clearing the room for the other striker.”

Kompany, whose men had led against their relegation rivals through Zeki Amdouni’s 36th-minute strike, added: “First I expect the referee to see it, it was that obvious.

“None of the Luton players have celebrated. The striker (looks) to the referee, to see if he got away with it.

“Luckily we have VAR, we think that is going to sort it out, and then it rolls, it rolls, lack of decision and that’s it, 1-1.

“I’m absolutely fine if we concede this goal and it’s consistent and this is allowed – if everyone can do it, I’ll tell my players to do it.

“But we dropped points at Villa after the softest red card and softest penalty against us, and it just keeps happening.

“Here I’m like ‘what do I go and tell (my players)?’. I don’t understand what’s happened to them a couple of weeks ago, what’s happened to them now. The frustration at this moment is very difficult to hide, it’s very difficult to digest it.”

Anyone found guilty of racially abusing Luton’s Carlton Morris must face “the strongest possible consequences”, Kick It Out has said.

The 28-year-old striker complained about a comment made by the home crowd late on in the Hatters’ Premier League match against Sheffield United at Bramall Lane.

Luton boss Rob Edwards confirmed after his side’s 3-2 win that the matter had been reported to the police.

Kick It Out issued a statement on Wednesday morning which read: “We send our full support to Carlton Morris. It’s shameful that once again a player should be subjected to alleged racism while doing their job.

“Morris should be praised for how he handled the situation, and we commend the clubs, police and officials for their swift approach. But it should never have to come to this.

“Those who think this vile behaviour towards players is acceptable need to face the strongest possible consequences.”

Luton boss Rob Edwards said South Yorkshire Police are investigating an alleged racist comment towards Carlton Morris in his side’s Boxing Day win at Sheffield United.

The striker complained of a comment made from the home crowd late in the second half, which left him “pretty angry”, and the police have spoken to him.

It soured what was a great day for Morris as he came off the bench to create two own goals in four minutes which earned the Hatters a vital 3-2 victory in the crunch basement Premier League battle at Bramall Lane.

Edwards said: “There was an alleged racist comment, the police are dealing with that, they have spoken to Carlton and got his take on it, so it is with them now; I have no more comment on it.

“He is alright – he was, at the time, pretty angry but he seems fine now.”

United boss Chris Wilder added: “There was a comment that was made and the referee came over to speak to me and Rob from a racial point of view, which is obviously not great if found to be the case.”

The Blades were on course for an important victory as second-half goals from Oli McBurnie and Anel Ahmedhodzic overturned Alfie Doughty’s first-half opener for the Hatters.

But substitute Morris was the orchestrator as Jack Robinson and Anis Slimane put through their own net to give Luton back-to-back Premier League wins for the first time.

They will now believe survival is a real possibility going into the second half of the campaign.

Edwards, who celebrated his birthday on Christmas Day, said: “It brings us closer to where we want to be. Back-to-back and within four days we have two thirds of the points we already had, it’s big for us.

“We all know it was a big game, they all are, it was important and it was very, very special to do it in the end, one that we will remember for a long time.

“We have won these two games in a row, the performances are going the right way, we have been consistent for a long time and we are getting rewards for our performances.”

Wilder claimed his side “chucked it away” as their chances of beating the drop continue to get slimmer, having amassed just nine points at the halfway stage.

He said: “We chucked it away. Don’t take this as a dig against our opponents but there will be a lot of talk about character and getting themselves back into the game with a never-say-die attitude and all that, it’s nothing to do with that.

“It’s to do with our attitude to defending. It cost us on Friday night (at Aston Villa) and it has cost us tonight.

“It’s an attitude to defending and I’d be saying the same thing if I was a manager at any other club in the pyramid.

“They haven’t had to do anything to get back in the game, we have basically handed them the game. We should be talking about a home win, not them getting two to take the points.

“I don’t think it was earned by them, it was given by us.”