Wolverhampton Wanderers and Newcastle United have the honour of closing out this weekend's Premier League fixtures with a Sunday afternoon showdown at Molineux.
Gary O'Neil's men are still searching for their first top-flight win of 2024-25, while the Magpies have accrued a promising seven points from their first three games of the new term.
Match preview
© Imago
An early contender for Wolves' goal of the season award, Jean-Ricner Bellegarde got his side back on terms in some style against Nottingham Forest two weekends ago, rifling in a terrific long-range goal just two minutes after Chris Wood headed in the opener.
The second strike that O'Neil's men craved eluded them, although that 1-1 draw at the City Ground at least got Sunday's hosts off the mark for the new campaign following back-to-back defeats at the hands of Arsenal (2-0) and Chelsea (6-2) in their first two contests.
While O'Neil's men bid to make it third time lucky in the top flight, a 2-0 success over Burnley in the EFL Cup saw the hosts restore a small sense of pride as they languish in the Premier League relegation zone, thanks in no small part to their atrocious defensive display against Chelsea.
That six-goal slaughter at the hands of the Blues also represented Wolves' fifth defeat from their last six Premier League matches at Molineux, during which time they have conceded 15 goals at a rate of 2.5 per match, only beating Luton Town in the process.
Furthermore, Wolves' only Premier League home clean sheet of 2024 so far came against former whipping boys Sheffield United in February, which spells danger against a Newcastle side who have not been shut out in any of their four fixtures this season.
© Imago
There would be no repeat of the 6-1 annihilation or 4-0 thrashing when Tottenham Hotspur paid a visit to St James' Park a fortnight ago, but Newcastle still managed to extend their sequence of home wins against the North London troupe on a day where three men in black and white found the back of the net.
Unfortunately for Dan Burn, his contribution came at the wrong end of the field, but the defender's blushes were spared by Alexander Isak and Harvey Barnes as Eddie Howe's men made it three wins from four in all competitions during a flying start to 2024-25.
Lying fifth in the rankings on account of their impressive early-season exploits, Newcastle have also bettered Southampton in the Premier League and Nottingham Forest in the EFL Cup either side of their contentious Bournemouth draw, where without VAR their unbeaten record may not be intact.
While Magpies fans - and supporters of many Premier League and Championship teams - do not always welcome the September hiatus with open arms, Newcastle have an affinity for coming back with a bang, winning each of their last seven games that have come straight after an international break.
Howe's crop have also managed to find the back of the net in 22 of their last 23 Premier League away matches, and the visitors have strung together a five-match unbeaten run against Wolves, following up a 2-2 Molineux draw last season with a 3-0 St James' Park success.
- L
- L
- D
- L
- L
- W
- D
- W
- D
- W
Team News
© Imago
No fewer than three Wolves players - Sasa Kalajdzic, Enso Gonzalez and Boubacar Traore - are currently out of the picture with knee injuries, while Yerson Mosquera is a doubt after picking up a knock in Colombia's World Cup qualifying win over Argentina.
Santiago Bueno will fill the void at the back if Mosquera does not make the cut this weekend, where goalkeeper Jose Sa could return to the matchday squad after being cut from the ranks for the Forest showdown.
The Portuguese's absence allowed Sam Johnstone to come in for his debut at the City Ground, but O'Neil now expects him and Sa to scrap it out for the number one jersey after the latter failed to secure a summer exit.
The hosting manager also revealed that Rayan Ait-Nouri and Mario Lemina need assessing following issues on international duty, so the door could be open for Andre to start in midfield.
While Wolves may lose a centre-back for Sunday's fixture, Newcastle will welcome one back in the shape of Fabian Schar, who has served his three-game ban for headbutting Ben Brereton Diaz in the opening weekend.
It is otherwise as you were for the Magpies, who remain without Sven Botman (knee), Jamaal Lascelles (knee) and Lewis Miley (ankle), and the game may also come too soon for Callum Wilson (back) and Joe Willock (thigh).
On a brighter note, midfielder Sandro Tonali could now be in line for his first Premier League start since returning from his betting ban after shining for Italy this month, playing the full 90 in wins over France and Israel and registering an assist in the former game.
Wolverhampton Wanderers possible starting lineup:
Johnstone; Semedo, S. Bueno, Dawson, Toti; Bellegarde, Andre, Gomes, Ait-Nouri; Cunha, Hwang
Newcastle United possible starting lineup:
Pope; Livramento, Schar, Burn, Hall; Guimaraes, Tonali, Joelinton; Barnes, Isak, Gordon
We say: Wolverhampton Wanderers 1-2 Newcastle United
Each of the nine previous Premier League showdowns between Wolves and Newcastle at Molineux has seen both teams score, and we can see that streak stretching to 10 on Sunday, taking into account Wolves' lack of clean sheets and the Magpies facing the most shots in the Premier League so far this term (54).
The potential returns of Schar and Tonali will add a bit more backbone to the visitors' XI, though, and the irrepressible trio up front should do what they do best to fire Howe's side to a gritty victory.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Ben Knapton
