A clash between two European hopefuls takes centre stage at Molineux today as Wolves host West Ham United in the Premier League.
Gary O’Neil‘s men have weathered a difficult storm recently following a string of injury woes that have severely impacted his squad, particularly in attack.
Wolves have had to adapt without most of their attacking talent as Hwang Hee-Chan, Pedro Neto, Jean-Ricner Bellegarde and Matheus Cunha have all faced spells on the sidelines.
As Hwang and Bellegarde near a return to action, Neto isn’t expected back till the middle of May, while Cunha returned to the side against Burnley in midweek, coming off the bench for 14 minutes in a 1-1 draw.
In their current situation, with O’Neil forced into starting 18-year-old Leon Chiwome for the second game running, a point at Turf Moor was seen as a positive outcome.
Now, with Cunha poised to make his first start since a 2-0 defeat against Brentford in February and Craig Dawson back in training, the Old Gold have every chance of beating West Ham this afternoon.
Chris Sutton predicts who will win out of Wolves and West Ham
Wolves have won just two of their previous seven meetings against the Hammers, though they have their won their last two clashes at Molineux by a 1-0 scoreline.
With an intense battle for Europe taking centre stage, the Old Gold can leapfrog West Ham into seventh position by securing a third consecutive home victory today.
The Wanderers, however, must deliver a much-improved performance from their trip to Turf Moor and by starting Cunha up front, O’Neil’s men will finally have a focal point to wreak havoc in the final third.
In the eyes of BBC pundit Chris Sutton, the spoils will be shared this afternoon. Predicting a 1-1 draw, he said (via BBC Sport): “After snatching defeat from the jaws of victory at St James’ Park last weekend, West Ham responded well with a draw against Tottenham on Tuesday.
“I still maintain Hammers boss David Moyes has done a decent job this season, and they are in a pretty good place ahead of the first leg of their Europa League quarter-final against Bayer Leverkusen next week.
“I don’t think the Hammers will win this one, though. Wolves have been creaking a little bit because of injuries, especially up front, but they are at home and I fancy them to get something here.”
Wolves must be wary of Jarrod Bowen threat
O’Neil’s men will likely take control of proceedings this afternoon, dictating the flow and tempo of the game with lots of possession.
West Ham, on the other hand, are one of the best counter-attacking teams in the Premier League with the likes of Jarrod Bowen, Lucas Paqueta, Mohammed Kudus and Michail Antonio streaming forward.
While the above quartet carry a huge threat, Wanderers will be most wary of Bowen, with the Englishman scoring 15 top-flight goals this term.
The 27-year-old scored and assisted in the 4-3 defeat to Newcastle while teeing up Kurt Zouma for his header last time out against Tottenham.
He’s the key dangerman that Wolves must stop to earn a positive result here.