Wolverhampton Wanderers will aim to make it back-to-back wins in the Premier League on Tuesday evening when they travel to Selhurst Park to face Crystal Palace.
Wolves ended their run of three consecutive defeats with a scrappy 1-0 win over Nottingham Forest in their last game. With the narrow victory, they have climbed out of the drop zone and are now 17th in the standings.
The club remain in the hunt to appoint a successor to Bruno Lage, but for now, stand-in manager Steve Davis will remain in charge for the game against Patrick Vieira’s Crystal Palace.
Nathan Collins will be available for selection having served his three-game suspension, but Chiquinho, Sasa Kalajdzic, Raul Jimenez and Pedro Neto are all out injured for Wolves.
Goalkeeper
Jose Sa produced a fantastic save to deny Brennan Johnson from the spot last weekend, helping Wolves secure three vital points against Nottingham Forest. The Portuguese is a certainty to start in goal once again.
Defence
Toti Gomes’ run in the side is set to come to an end following the availability of Nathan Collins, who was shown a straight red card for a reckless challenge on Jack Grealish last month. Collins will be ready to resume his centre-back partnership with Max Kilman in the Wolves lineup and try and help his side keep a clean sheet at Selhurst Park.
Jonny Otto and Rayan Ait-Nouri will retain their places at right-back and left-back in the Wolves lineup, respectively, hoping to provide their side with defensive solidity as well as attacking impetus against Palace.
Midfield
The midfield could again have the all-Portuguese contingent look, with Ruben Neves, Joao Moutinho and Matheus Nunes all starting in the Wolves lineup. Neves and Moutinho should form the double pivot in the centre of the park, tasked with the responsibility of controlling the tempo of the game. They must provide protection to the Wolves’ backline while creating openings in the final third.
Industrious and busy, Nunes’ role in the side is crucial as his movement and driving runs with the ball in the box could go a long way in stretching the Palace defence.
Attack
Wolves will need a player to hold the ball up against Palace, and there is no one better than Diego Costa in the squad to do that job. Costa, lining up in the No.9 role, will look to use all his experience, aggression and physicality to cause problems for the Eagles’ centre-backs.
Goncalo Guedes was an unused substitute in the 1-0 win over Forest but could be recalled into the Wolves lineup to replace Daniel Podence. Adama Traore, meanwhile, did enough last time out to warrant a place in the side.
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