Koreans in Europe: Hwang Hee-chan gets assist as Wolves end year on high note

Hwang Hee-chan picked up his third assist of the season on Saturday as Wolverhampton Wanderers beat Everton 3-0 for a third-straight win to end the year.

Wolverhampton Wanderers' Hwang Hee-chan in action with Everton's Jordan Pickford during a Premier League game at the Molineux in Wolverhampton, England on Saturday. [REUTERS/YONHAP]

Hwang Hee-chan picked up his third assist of the season on Saturday as Wolverhampton Wanderers beat Everton 3-0 for a third-straight win to end the year.

Wolves looked confident throughout at the Molineux in Wolverhampton, England, with Max Kilman, Matheus Cunha and Craig Dawson combining for goals in the 25th, 53rd and 61st minutes in the comfortable win.

Hwang assisted Cunha for the second and kept Jordan Pickford on his toes with one goal disallowed, one off the post and more than a few that tested the Everton keeper.

Saturday’s win marks Wolves second consecutive win by at least three goals, after beating Brentford earlier in the week, for the first time in the Premier League era. It also keeps Wolves looking comfortable in 11th place on the table, tying with Chelsea in 10th on points but slipping behind on goal difference.

“We’ve suffered a few set-backs this year with results and performances that we didn’t like, and we’ve had to bounce back, but today, I really liked the understanding of what we needed to do,” Wolves manager Gary O’Neil said after the game.

“It’s my favorite one so far, which is big praise because we have had some good ones. Twenty-eight points from 20 games is amazing, so I’m delighted.”

Saturday’s game also marked Hwang’s last appearance before he leaves Wolves for what could be over a month for the delayed 2023 Asian Cup.

The Asian Cup kicks off on Jan. 12 and ends on Feb. 10, with the knockout stage set to begin on Jan. 28.

Korea are two-time champions and finalists in the 2015 tournament, and enter as the third-highest ranked team in Asia after Japan and Iran. That makes them favorites to reach at least the semifinals, potentially taking Hwang out of the Spurs squad for the entirety of the tournament.

With the Africa Cup of Nations running in the same window, Wolves are also set to lose Rayan Ait-Nouri of Algeria and Boubacar Traore of Mali.

“Without Rayan, Bouba and Channy for the next month there will be huge doubts about whether we can keep it going and I look forward to working really hard to move them on again,” O’Neil said on Saturday.

“Of course, it will be difficult. Rayan and Channy have been huge players, Bouba had a really good impact today off the bench, and with an already small group and with three key ones going away, it will make it tougher.

“But I’m looking forward to the group giving everything again until the end of the season and keep ploughing on. But I just love working with the current group and the players that I have.”

Wolves will be back in action on Friday as they take on Brentford in the third round of the FA Cup, just a week after beating them 4-1 in the Premier League. Hwang will join the Korean squad to train ahead of the Asian Cup, where their campaign begins against Bahrain on Jan. 15.

BY JIM BULLEY [jim.bulley@joongang.co.kr]