Wolves secured back-to-back wins to move into third in the Championship and calm some of the criticism of manager Cesar Peixoto as Cardiff City's winless away run continued.

Goals from Fer Lopez and Adam Armstrong inside the first 15 minutes gave Wolves the comfort they needed before defender Ladislav Krejci made it a hat-trick of headers with a set-piece goal before the hour mark.

Peixoto, who had been criticised by sections of the Wolves support in recent weeks, now sees his side move to within two points of the automatic promotion places.

And despite Cardiff asking more questions after the break, they could not stop it becoming three wins from four for the Old Gold - and four without loss since suffering consecutive defeats to Middlesbrough and Bolton at the start of the month.

Cardiff, meanwhile, drop to 18th as they wait to register their first success on the road since returning to the Championship.

Cardiff will at least return to home comforts for their next two fixtures, although they need a far better start to proceedings than they managed here when they welcome West Ham on Wednesday.

Wolves, meanwhile, will be energised for their successive away trips at Bristol City and under-par Wrexham as they look to find convincing consistency under the Portuguese manager appointed this summer to lead the club back to the Premier League.

Having been on the end of Molineux moans despite beating Watford last time out, Peixoto couldn't have asked for a better start to quiet criticism.

Jordan James – whose withdrawal against Watford had prompted fans' frustrations to be aired from the stands – shot wide within minutes, and Rafiki Said saw a close-range effort blocked by Will Fish.

And the fast-tempo start had its breakthrough with 11 minutes gone, with a goal that exposed Cardiff's defensive frailties

Hugo Bueno was the orchestrator, driving with the ball from deep in his own half before floating a pass into the area, Lopez stooping to head home as Calum Scanlon failed to follow his run.

It was a welcome return to the side for Lopez, the only change from the win over Watford, underlining the 22-year-old's importance as he made it six Championship goals and three assists for the season.

He was involved, too, as the hosts doubled their advantage four minutes later, spreading wide to Said, who repeated the trick of floating a ball behind the flat Bluebirds' defence to be met by the unmarked Armstrong, heading home for his second in as many games.

Wolves should have had a third after the Bluebirds' Nathan Trott inexplicably passed the ball straight to Said inside the area as they attempted to play out, only for the forward – in an otherwise eye-catching display – to shoot back into the relieved arms of the goalkeeper.

That, with an early injury to Wales midfielder James, was the only downside of Wolves' opening half.

But Cardiff did provide some warnings; Chris Willock had tested Jose Sa early on and then provided a chance for Ollie Tanner, who was blocked by the same man.

Sa was also equal to an effort from Joel Colwill as Cardiff battled, but the game was over when – from a 58th minute corner – Krejci was far too free to meet a Kieran Trippier corner for the hosts' third.

Yousef Salech was also frustrated by Sa with a header of his own, with Colwill missing the rebound, while the afternoon was summed up - and defeat confirmed - when top-scorer Jack Moylan saw his close-range strike ruled out for offside.

Wolves secured back-to-back wins to move into third in the Championship and calm some of the criticism of manager Cesar Peixoto as Cardiff City's winless away run continued.

Goals from Fer Lopez and Adam Armstrong inside the first 15 minutes gave Wolves the comfort they needed before defender Ladislav Krejci made it a hat-trick of headers with a set-piece goal before the hour mark.

Peixoto, who had been criticised by sections of the Wolves support in recent weeks, now sees his side move to within two points of the automatic promotion places.

And despite Cardiff asking more questions after the break, they could not stop it becoming three wins from four for the Old Gold - and four without loss since suffering consecutive defeats to Middlesbrough and Bolton at the start of the month.

Cardiff, meanwhile, drop to 18th as they wait to register their first success on the road since returning to the Championship.

Cardiff will at least return to home comforts for their next two fixtures, although they need a far better start to proceedings than they managed here when they welcome West Ham on Wednesday.

Wolves, meanwhile, will be energised for their successive away trips at Bristol City and under-par Wrexham as they look to find convincing consistency under the Portuguese manager appointed this summer to lead the club back to the Premier League.

Having been on the end of Molineux moans despite beating Watford last time out, Peixoto couldn't have asked for a better start to quiet criticism.

Jordan James – whose withdrawal against Watford had prompted fans' frustrations to be aired from the stands – shot wide within minutes, and Rafiki Said saw a close-range effort blocked by Will Fish.

And the fast-tempo start had its breakthrough with 11 minutes gone, with a goal that exposed Cardiff's defensive frailties

Hugo Bueno was the orchestrator, driving with the ball from deep in his own half before floating a pass into the area, Lopez stooping to head home as Calum Scanlon failed to follow his run.

It was a welcome return to the side for Lopez, the only change from the win over Watford, underlining the 22-year-old's importance as he made it six Championship goals and three assists for the season.

He was involved, too, as the hosts doubled their advantage four minutes later, spreading wide to Said, who repeated the trick of floating a ball behind the flat Bluebirds' defence to be met by the unmarked Armstrong, heading home for his second in as many games.

Wolves should have had a third after the Bluebirds' Nathan Trott inexplicably passed the ball straight to Said inside the area as they attempted to play out, only for the forward – in an otherwise eye-catching display – to shoot back into the relieved arms of the goalkeeper.

That, with an early injury to Wales midfielder James, was the only downside of Wolves' opening half.

But Cardiff did provide some warnings; Chris Willock had tested Jose Sa early on and then provided a chance for Ollie Tanner, who was blocked by the same man.

Sa was also equal to an effort from Joel Colwill as Cardiff battled, but the game was over when – from a 58th minute corner – Krejci was far too free to meet a Kieran Trippier corner for the hosts' third.

Yousef Salech was also frustrated by Sa with a header of his own, with Colwill missing the rebound, while the afternoon was summed up - and defeat confirmed - when top-scorer Jack Moylan saw his close-range strike ruled out for offside.

Wolves secured back-to-back wins to move into third in the Championship and calm some of the criticism of manager Cesar Peixoto as Cardiff City's winless away run continued.

Goals from Fer Lopez and Adam Armstrong inside the first 15 minutes gave Wolves the comfort they needed before defender Ladislav Krejci made it a hat-trick of headers with a set-piece goal before the hour mark.

Peixoto, who had been criticised by sections of the Wolves support in recent weeks, now sees his side move to within two points of the automatic promotion places.

And despite Cardiff asking more questions after the break, they could not stop it becoming three wins from four for the Old Gold - and four without loss since suffering consecutive defeats to Middlesbrough and Bolton at the start of the month.

Cardiff, meanwhile, drop to 18th as they wait to register their first success on the road since returning to the Championship.

Cardiff will at least return to home comforts for their next two fixtures, although they need a far better start to proceedings than they managed here when they welcome West Ham on Wednesday.

Wolves, meanwhile, will be energised for their successive away trips at Bristol City and under-par Wrexham as they look to find convincing consistency under the Portuguese manager appointed this summer to lead the club back to the Premier League.

Having been on the end of Molineux moans despite beating Watford last time out, Peixoto couldn't have asked for a better start to quiet criticism.

Jordan James – whose withdrawal against Watford had prompted fans' frustrations to be aired from the stands – shot wide within minutes, and Rafiki Said saw a close-range effort blocked by Will Fish.

And the fast-tempo start had its breakthrough with 11 minutes gone, with a goal that exposed Cardiff's defensive frailties

Hugo Bueno was the orchestrator, driving with the ball from deep in his own half before floating a pass into the area, Lopez stooping to head home as Calum Scanlon failed to follow his run.

It was a welcome return to the side for Lopez, the only change from the win over Watford, underlining the 22-year-old's importance as he made it six Championship goals and three assists for the season.

He was involved, too, as the hosts doubled their advantage four minutes later, spreading wide to Said, who repeated the trick of floating a ball behind the flat Bluebirds' defence to be met by the unmarked Armstrong, heading home for his second in as many games.

Wolves should have had a third after the Bluebirds' Nathan Trott inexplicably passed the ball straight to Said inside the area as they attempted to play out, only for the forward – in an otherwise eye-catching display – to shoot back into the relieved arms of the goalkeeper.

That, with an early injury to Wales midfielder James, was the only downside of Wolves' opening half.

But Cardiff did provide some warnings; Chris Willock had tested Jose Sa early on and then provided a chance for Ollie Tanner, who was blocked by the same man.

Sa was also equal to an effort from Joel Colwill as Cardiff battled, but the game was over when – from a 58th minute corner – Krejci was far too free to meet a Kieran Trippier corner for the hosts' third.

Yousef Salech was also frustrated by Sa with a header of his own, with Colwill missing the rebound, while the afternoon was summed up - and defeat confirmed - when top-scorer Jack Moylan saw his close-range strike ruled out for offside.

Wolves secured back-to-back wins to move into third in the Championship and calm some of the criticism of manager Cesar Peixoto as Cardiff City's winless away run continued.

Goals from Fer Lopez and Adam Armstrong inside the first 15 minutes gave Wolves the comfort they needed before defender Ladislav Krejci made it a hat-trick of headers with a set-piece goal before the hour mark.

Peixoto, who had been criticised by sections of the Wolves support in recent weeks, now sees his side move to within two points of the automatic promotion places.

And despite Cardiff asking more questions after the break, they could not stop it becoming three wins from four for the Old Gold - and four without loss since suffering consecutive defeats to Middlesbrough and Bolton at the start of the month.

Cardiff, meanwhile, drop to 18th as they wait to register their first success on the road since returning to the Championship.

Cardiff will at least return to home comforts for their next two fixtures, although they need a far better start to proceedings than they managed here when they welcome West Ham on Wednesday.

Wolves, meanwhile, will be energised for their successive away trips at Bristol City and under-par Wrexham as they look to find convincing consistency under the Portuguese manager appointed this summer to lead the club back to the Premier League.

Having been on the end of Molineux moans despite beating Watford last time out, Peixoto couldn't have asked for a better start to quiet criticism.

Jordan James – whose withdrawal against Watford had prompted fans' frustrations to be aired from the stands – shot wide within minutes, and Rafiki Said saw a close-range effort blocked by Will Fish.

And the fast-tempo start had its breakthrough with 11 minutes gone, with a goal that exposed Cardiff's defensive frailties

Hugo Bueno was the orchestrator, driving with the ball from deep in his own half before floating a pass into the area, Lopez stooping to head home as Calum Scanlon failed to follow his run.

It was a welcome return to the side for Lopez, the only change from the win over Watford, underlining the 22-year-old's importance as he made it six Championship goals and three assists for the season.

He was involved, too, as the hosts doubled their advantage four minutes later, spreading wide to Said, who repeated the trick of floating a ball behind the flat Bluebirds' defence to be met by the unmarked Armstrong, heading home for his second in as many games.

Wolves should have had a third after the Bluebirds' Nathan Trott inexplicably passed the ball straight to Said inside the area as they attempted to play out, only for the forward – in an otherwise eye-catching display – to shoot back into the relieved arms of the goalkeeper.

That, with an early injury to Wales midfielder James, was the only downside of Wolves' opening half.

But Cardiff did provide some warnings; Chris Willock had tested Jose Sa early on and then provided a chance for Ollie Tanner, who was blocked by the same man.

Sa was also equal to an effort from Joel Colwill as Cardiff battled, but the game was over when – from a 58th minute corner – Krejci was far too free to meet a Kieran Trippier corner for the hosts' third.

Yousef Salech was also frustrated by Sa with a header of his own, with Colwill missing the rebound, while the afternoon was summed up - and defeat confirmed - when top-scorer Jack Moylan saw his close-range strike ruled out for offside.

Attempt blocked. Rafiki Saïd (Wolverhampton Wanderers) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by André.