Everton 1-0 Wolves: Alcaraz comes off the bench to win it three minutes later

Everton waited until the 80th minute to settle their Carabao Cup third-round tie, and the player who did it had been on the pitch for only three. Charly Alcaraz came off the bench, took a pass from Tyler Dibling and finished, and Everton beat Wolverhampton Wanderers 1-0 at Hill Dickinson Stadium.

It was a night of territory more than chances. Everton had 62.4% of the ball and attacked for long spells, but Wolves goalkeeper João Virgínia stood in the way. He made a close-range save to deny Thierno Barry's header in first-half stoppage time, and later kept out an effort from Brennan Johnson.

At the other end, Wolves barely threatened. Adam Armstrong's effort early in the second half, which Jordan Pickford saved, was their first shot on target. Wolves boss Cesar Peixoto summed it up afterwards: "I'm happy with the job today but not with the result."

Goal and cards

• 80' — Charly Alcaraz (Everton), assisted by Tyler Dibling. 1-0
• Yellow cards: Jackson Tchatchoua (Wolves, 10'), Jack Grealish (Everton, 11'), Tommy Doyle (Wolves, 90+1')

Line-ups

Everton (4-2-3-1): Jordan Pickford; Michael Keane, Jake O'Brien, Vitaliy Mykolenko, Ainsley Maitland-Niles; Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, James Garner, Hayden Hackney; Thierno Barry, Jack Grealish, Tyler Dibling. Substitutes used: Charly Alcaraz, Tyrique George, Brennan Johnson.

Wolverhampton Wanderers (4-2-3-1): João Virgínia; Ladislav Krejcí, Toti Gomes, Ghislain Konan, Jackson Tchatchoua; Tommy Doyle, Jordan James, Boubacar Traoré, Raúl Jiménez, Tawanda Chirewa, Sean Neave. Substitutes used: Bertrand Traoré, Kieran Trippier, Adam Armstrong, Nasser Djiga, Jean-Ricner Bellegarde.

The numbers

Dibling's night

The assist was the headline, but Dibling's evening was bigger than one pass. Everton assistant manager Alan Irvine spoke warmly about him afterwards: "Since he came back for pre-season, he looks like he belongs here; he looks more comfortable." In a game short of clear openings, the winger was the one player who kept finding the final ball.

Two rotated sides

Wolves made nine changes from their league win at Sheffield United, and the visitors lost Jiménez to injury early in the first half; he is set to miss their Black Country derby against West Brom. According to the bracket, Everton had beaten Preston North End 4-0 away in the second round on 26 August, while Wolves had won 3-0 against Port Vale in the first round and 2-0 at Sheffield Wednesday in the second.

There is no previous meeting between the two in this site's archive, so this tie starts a fresh page rather than continuing a story. The win means Everton go on while Wolves' interest in the competition ends.

What's next

Everton have been drawn at home to Newcastle United in the fourth round, scheduled for late October 2026. Wolves turn back to league duty, with the derby against West Brom next on their schedule.