WE LOOK AHEAD TO WOLVES UPCOMING MATCH WITH LIVERPOOL
TEAM NEWS
Wolves await news on whether Tommy Doyle will be available to make his debut following a minor knee issue. However, fellow midfielder Joe Hodge is set to miss out due to a hamstring injury.
Liverpool will be without Trent Alexander-Arnold due to the hamstring issue he picked up in the win over Aston Villa. They also remain without the suspended Virgil Van Dijk, but Ibrahima Konate has returned to training.
GARY O'NEIL
Here are the key lines from his news conference:
Joe Hodge is still out but Tommy Doyle is available for selection after his move on deadline day from Manchester City.
Doyle appeared in a behind-closed-doors friendly during the international break, with O’Neil stating: “We are trying to get him up to speed as he has not played a lot of football since the Euros.”
Fellow new signing Jean-Ricner Bellegarde has caught his eye: “He has been excellent in training. His approach, his work ethic and he has a fantastic attitude. I am excited to see how quickly he can adjust to impact the Premier League.”
He believes the approach play Wolves have exhibited this season has been promising: “Numbers-wise we are creating opportunities and arriving in good areas. There is still a lot we need to improve to get where we need to be and situations where we could have done better.”
Linked to that, he was pleased to see Fabio Silva get goals for Portugal Under-21s during the two-week break: “Having your number nine scoring goals of course helps with confidence. It gives an extra boost and it is good he has managed to get minutes while away.”
He has been impressed with Liverpool: “I would be very surprised if they are not right at the top again this season. They have made a big improvement from last season and they look a very good side. But we have got a good game plan in place and I am looking forward to seeing what the boys can produce.”
MATCH FACTS & STATS
Head-to-head
- Wolves have lost 12 of the past 13 Premier League meetings, with the exception being a 3-0 victory at Molineux in February last season.
- They are aiming to win to consecutive home league games versus Liverpool for the first time since a run of three between 1979-80 to 1981-82.
- Wolves have scored just 12 goals in their last 23 league matches against the Reds.
- This is the fifth encounter between the sides in 2023 following two league fixtures and another two in the third round of the FA Cup last season.
Wolverhampton Wanderers
- Wolves’ only win in 12 league matches last season against teams that finished in the top six of the table was 3-0 at home to Liverpool.
- They could lose their opening two home fixtures of a Premier League season for only the second time, having done so in 2021-22.
- The Reds have failed to score in only one of their 11 league home games in 2023, keeping seven clean sheets.
- All four of their league goals this season have been headers, double their tally for the whole of last season. Three of those four goals have come from a Pedro Neto assist.
- They are the first team in Premier League history to have their first three goals of a season scored by substitutes.
Liverpool
- Liverpool are unbeaten in 15 Premier League matches since a 4-1 defeat by Manchester City on 1 April.
- They failed to win any of their six Saturday 12.30pm kick-offs last season (D3, L3), five of which were away from home.
- Mohamed Salah is the first player to score or assist in 10 consecutive appearances in the Premier League since he himself did so for 15 games in a row between August-December 2021.
- Salah could become only the fourth Premier League player to register an assist in five successive away fixtures, emulating Muzzy Izzet, Cesc Fabregas and Gerard Deulofeu.
- Jurgen Klopp has won nine of his 10 top-flight matches as a manager against Wolves.
MATCH OFFICIALS
Referee: Michael Oliver. Assistants: Stuart Burt, Dan Cook. Fourth official: Tim Robinson. VAR: Paul Tierney. Assistant VAR: Mark Scholes.
MATCH INFO
The match will kick off at 12.30pm at Molineux on Saturday 15th September and will be shown live on TNT Sports.