Wolverhampton Wanderers snatched a last-minute winner at Bramall Lane on Sunday, and every part of that decisive move had begun the match on the away bench. Sheffield United manager Chris Wilder, speaking to reporters afterwards, acknowledged more than once that his counterpart's squad carries quality both deep and wide. He was not wrong.

Wolves manager Cesar Peixoto had built a promising attacking structure even before his substitutes — Kieran Trippier, Tommy Doyle, and Raul Jimenez — tilted the game. That starting shape, though, reveals the real tactical identity Wolves are building in the Championship.

Peixoto's attacking framework

Wolves operate with three attacking midfielders supporting a single striker, with a central midfield pair anchoring the shape behind them — what might be called the Peixoto Parallelogram. Jimenez's age, combined with a fixture schedule running at two to three matches per week, has made rotation necessary. Adam Armstrong has shifted from the left flank to centre-forward, with youngster Mateus Mane filling in wide.

At 22, Fer Lopez occupies the central position among the three attacking midfielders, with Rodrigo Gomes operating outside him. Between them, the pair have accumulated goal contributions at a remarkable rate. Lopez was averaging a goal or assist per match ahead of Wolves' trip to South Yorkshire.

Munetsi's runs change the equation

The midfield partnership of Andre and Marshall Munetsi logged 25 appearances together in the Premier League last season — a campaign that ended in relegation. Playing as a first-choice duo in a side expected to win promotion is an entirely different test, and early signs are encouraging.

The most effective element of Wolves' midfield structure is the interaction between Lopez and Munetsi. Lopez drops deep, sometimes collecting the ball directly from defenders, and rather than simply adding numbers to midfield, his withdrawal creates space for Munetsi to burst forward — running off the shoulder of the last defender, offering a threat more commonly associated with a forward than a central midfielder.

Munetsi's ability to time those runs gives Wolves an unpredictable dimension. He is available for passes in behind, and equally comfortable linking with Mane, Lopez, and the striker at close range, while left-back Hugo Bueno adds further width. Sheffield United's Japhet Tanganga and Mark McGuinness were kept busy managing Munetsi across Wilder's back three on Sunday — they contained him, but Wolves still found a way.

It was Munetsi's trademark run that produced Wolves' first Championship goal of the season, against Blackburn Rovers at Molineux, though Blackburn's defensive positioning made the space look more generously available than it may have been by design.

Competition and what comes next

Peixoto has indicated that Jordan James, the former Birmingham City midfielder on loan from Rennes, represents genuine competition for Munetsi's place — a development the manager framed in entirely positive terms.

Before any Championship targets come into focus, Wolves face a Carabao Cup tie against Everton on Wednesday. After that, Molineux hosts the Black Country derby against West Bromwich Albion. The supporters who celebrated Jimenez's winner in Sheffield have already set their sights well beyond the Championship table.