Relegation battling Wolves host Aston Villa at Molineux in a huge West Midlands derby.
Victory could see Wolves climb out of the relegation zone if results elsewhere go in their favour earlier in the day, whilst Villa will stay eighth with a win.
Team News
Joao Gomes is suspended for Wolves following his red card in last weekend’s defeat at home to Arsenal.
Jorgen Strand Larsen (muscle) is ruled out but Carlos Forbes (ankle) could return if fit for selection.
Mario Lemina (personal), Yerson Mosquera, Boubacar Traore (both knee), Leon Chiwone, Sasa Kalajdzic and Enso Gonzalez (all ACL) remain sidelined.
Villa could welcome Ross Barkley back from a calf injury which had sidelined him in recent weeks.
Matty Cash however is ruled out after he suffered a calf injury during their midweek Champions League win over Celtic.
Amadou Onana (hamstring), Tyrone Mings (knee) and Pau Torres (metatarsal) remain sidelined,
When is Kick-Off?
Wolves host Villa at Molineux on Saturday 1 February at 5:30pm GMT, live on Sky Sports in the UK.
Stat Attack
- Wolves have won one of their last five Premier League meetings against Villa (W1, D2, L2).
- Villa have won one of their last five Premier League visits to Wolves (W1, D1, L3).
- Villa are looking to win three consecutive top-flight games against Wolves for the first time since a four-match streak from December 1895 – April 1897.
- Wolves have scored one goal in their last four league matches (L4).
- Five of Ollie Watkins’ 10 league goals for Villa this season have been scored on his right foot.
Prediction
Wolves could start this game in the relegation zone but after a positive display in their narrow defeat to Arsenal, there has to be belief that they can get something here if can sort out their end product and continue to defend resiliently.
Villa though will be eager to produce a much better defensive display than they did against Celtic in which they were initially excellent in attack yet switched off and conceded twice, before they eventually pulled off the win which proved enough for a top-eight Champions League finish in the league phase.
Molineux though has been Villa’s Achilles heel lately but if they turn up and play like they did in midweek but stay focused throughout, they should get the win given Wolves’ current defensive struggles and Strand Larsen is a huge loss in attack.
Prediction: Wolves 0-2 Aston Villa
Result: Wolves 2-0 Aston Villa
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