Wolves have basement business to attend in the Premier League on Saturday when they entertain West Ham to Molineux.
The Wanderers suffered penalty-shootout heartache in their EFL Cup quarter-final with Nottingham Forest on Wednesday evening, days after VAR controversy denied Julen Lopetegui’s side a late winner in their FA Cup draw with Liverpool at Anfield.
Lopetegui and co. were held to a 1-1 draw with Aston Villa in their last Premier League game, which did little to help their efforts to move away from the relegation zone. They remain 19th in the table and will be desperate to beat fellow strugglers West Ham, who are on a six-game winless run in the Premier League.
Wolves Team News
Diego Costa has missed the Wolves’ last two games with an unknown issue and his availability at the weekend also remains doubtful. Boubacar Traore is the latest player to join long-term absentees Sasa Kalajdzic, Pedro Neto and Chiquinho on the sidelines.
This means Julen Lopetegui will have the same squad to pick his team from against West Ham.
Predicted Wolves Lineup vs West Ham (4-2-3-1)
Goalkeeper
Jose Sa has been a consistent performer in an otherwise disappointing campaign for Wolves. The Portuguese is a certainty to start in between the sticks against West Ham.
Defence
Hugo Bueno eyes a return to the Wolves defence, having been an unused substitute against Nottingham Forest in the EFL Cup. He is expected to start at left-back, with Nelson Semedo holding his right-back spot.
Max Kilman should resume his centre-back partnership with Nathan Collins, as the duo look to keep West Ham’s forwards quiet at the weekend.
Midfield
Ruben Neves is a certainty to take his place in the Wolves midfield despite his recent penalty miss against Nottingham Forest. He will be joined by his compatriots Matheus Nunes and Joao Moutinho in the engine room, with the latter taking up an advanced position.
The trio of Neves, Moutinho and Nunes will look to take control of the game from the onset and dominate the opposition in the centre of the pitch.
Attack
With Diego Costa’s availability up in the air, Lopetegui could stick with Raul Jimenez up top after the Mexican scored against Nottingham Forest in the EFL Cup. This should have given Jimenez some confidence and he will be raring to get himself on the scoresheet again at the weekend.
Daniel Podence could get the nod over Goncalo Guedes on the left, while Hwang Hee-chan looks to provide creativity, pace and energy from wide right. The likes of Adama Traore, Goncalo Guedes and Matheus Cunha will have to be content with roles on the bench and make an impact against West Ham if called upon.