"Dream come true" Wolves Academy star Kitolano shines in comeback match against PSG.

Over 5,000 Wolves fans packed themselves into the Molineux stadium, and braced for the cold, as the U23s academy team were set to face French giants PSG U23s, in their opening Premier League International Cup game.

With Ryan Giles’ departure to Shrewsbury, and Lewis Richards away on international duty with Ireland, there was an opening in the left wing-back position, that was granted to John Kitolano for the European clash.

Kitolano signed for Wolves last summer from Norwegian side Odds BK, who play in Eliteserien, which is Norway’s premier football league.

Having been side-lined through injury since early October, it was exciting to see what the 20-year-old would bring to the side, as he started with the number 6 shirt, on his first game back.

John Kitolano's thoughts on the game and his comeback from injury.

The action

Due to the nature of the opposition, and potential rustiness from an extended absence, it was not the ideal start for Kitolano. Within the first minute, PSG right-winger Ayoub Yousfi was able to make a well timed run along the flank and lose Kitolano’s marking.

Yousfi managed to get a cross away into the box, as Kitolano couldn’t get a block in the way. The cross found the head of Alexandre Fressange, who headed home to give the Parisians a lead with about 28 seconds played.

Any nerves soon wore off. Kitolano began to effectively find space in attacking positions along the left wing and he cut inside to link up with the midfielders well. He was impactful in attack, crossing high and low balls into the box, forcing a few corners and attempts on goal.

Defensively, he tracked back well, and kept his marked man quiet. He adapted to a change in tactics at halftime, which lead to a higher press from the defensive line. The Congolese-Norwegian linked up comfortably with centre back Dan Csoka throughout the game.

Csoka equalised in the second half, with a headed goal, from a well worked set piece.

For any Wolves fans worried about Kitolano’s early exit from the game, he was substituted due to cramp, and was no more than a rehab procedure.

Striker Luke Cundle on Wolves and Kitolano's performance against PSG.

Defender Owen Otasowie on Kitolano stepping up:

Wolves U23s Caretaker Manager Mark Kennedy on Kitolano’s performance:

“I thought John did really well. He's been out for a hell of a long time, so I think he deserves a lot of credit for how we played tonight. I think he played very well, but there's a lot of things that he can improve on.

I thought he was quite passive in his out of possession stuff today, He could have been a lot more aggressive than that. But I thought by the end of the game he had a very good game.

We knew going into the game that he wasn't going to finish the game. If John scored a hat trick or looks like Franco Baresi out there, he was always going to come off on ‘X’ amount of minutes.

But I think he did very well tonight.”

First Impressions:

Prolonged breaks due to injuries are always difficult to comeback from, no matter what level or position. Today I believe Kitolano performed very well and after a shaky start.

He was able to find his footing, and really contributed to the side’s attacking build up play, with effective crosses.

Kitolano also showed a high defensive work rate, which is essential for the wing back role.