Fifth-placed Brighton & Hove Albion will look to make it three wins in a row when they host winless Wolves at the Amex Stadium.
Wolves will be eager to bring an end to their six-match losing streak when they hit the road to the Amex Stadium to lock horns with Brighton & Hove Albion, who have been in great form of late.
The home team are fifth in the Premier League, with 15 points in their eight outings. They have won four, drawn three and lost once so far. The Seagulls secured a massive 3-2 win over Tottenham Hotspur and followed it up with a 1-0 victory against Newcastle United. They have been doing most things right of late and will hope to make it three wins in a row.
The visitors sit at the bottom of the points table, with just one point out of their eight games. The Black Country outfit have lost a total of seven matches already. Wolves played out a draw in Gameweek 2 and have been on a losing streak ever since.
Gary O’Neil’s men are heading into this fixture against Brighton on the back of a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Manchester City. They did try their best to keep the defending champions at bay, but it still was not good enough.
Wolves are not going to find things easy against the Seagulls away from home. They will have to do something special to secure all three points here. The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at both teams and tries to predict the tactics they could deploy.
Team News & Tactics
Brighton & Hove Albion
Danny Welbeck’s availability was a major concern after he was given oxygen and stretchered off against Newcastle United last weekend. But, the Englishman is already training and could be a part of the matchday squad.
The home team will be without the services of Solly March, Adam Webster, Joao Pedro, James Milner, and Matt O’Riley. Meanwhile, Simon Adingra and Yankuba Minteh both have fitness concerns, and their involvement is doubtful.
Brighton & Hove Albion should line up in a 4-2-3-1 formation, where Bart Verbruggen will be in goal. Joel Veltman and Ferdi Kadıoglu will feature as the full-backs for them, while Igor Julio will pair up with Lewis Dunk in the heart of the defence.
Carlos Baleba and Jack Hinshelwood will form the double pivot in midfield. They will look to shield the back line as well as control the tempo of the game. Kaoru Mitoma and Yasin Ayari will feature as the wingers for the Seagulls, while Georginio Rutter will be the attacking midfielder. With Welbeck unlikely to start, Evan Ferguson should be leading the line for them.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Verbruggen; Veltman, Dunk, Igor, Kadioglu; Baleba, Hinshelwood; Mitoma, Rutter, Ayari; Ferguson
Wolverhampton Wanderers
Gary O’Neil will be without the likes of Hwang Hee-chan, Yerson Mosquera, Boubacar Traore, Enso Gonzalez, Sasa Kalajdzic, and Enso Gonzalez. While Sam Johnstone could be fit in time for this fixture, Jose Sa is expected to continue in between the sticks thanks to his impressive performances.
The visitors will line up in a 3-5-2 formation, where Sa should be in goal. The back three in front of him should consist of Santiago Bueno, Craig Dawson, and Toti Gomes. They will aim to keep things tight at the back and help their team secure their first win of the season. Nelson Semedo and Rayan Ait-Nouri should start as the wing-backs.
Andre will start in the centre of the park, with Mario Lemina and Joao Gomes. They will look to ensure Brighton do not dominate the proceedings. As for the attack, Jorgen Strand Larsen should start alongside Matheus Cunha in the strike partnership.
Probable Lineup (3-5-2): Sa; Toti, Bueno, Dawson; Semedo, Gomes, Andre, Lemina, Ait-Nouri; Larsen, Cunha
Key Stats
- Brighton’s 11 top-flight wins over Wolves is more than they have managed against any other side. Wolves have earned just three wins in their 20 away league games against Brighton and all of those have been by a 1-0 margin.
- Brighton & Hove Albion need a point to equal their highest tally of 16 after nine games of a top-flight season, which set last year.
- Wolves have earned just one point from their last 11 Premier League games and have lost more games (10) and conceded more goals (33) than any other top-flight side during that time. Gary O’Neil’s men have failed to win any of their first eight league matches in a season for just the fourth time in the club’s history.
- Brighton & Hove Albion have won just 12 of their 45 Premier League fixtures against teams starting the day in the relegation zone (27%).
- Since the beginning of last season, only Erling Haaland (16) and Ollie Watkins (12) have scored more Premier League away goals than Matheus Cunha (11).
Player to Watch
Carlos Baleba
The young defensive midfielder has had an impressive start to the new season and finds himself on the wishlist of multiple top clubs from across Europe. Baleba has four goal contributions in his nine outings. He has started each of their last six games and given the kind of performances he has put in so far, the 20-year-old can surely have a big say on the result of the game.
Prediction
Brighton & Hove Albion 2-0 Wolverhampton Wanderers
Wolves have struggled for form since the start of the new season. They are yet to win a game, and that is unlikely to change against Brighton & Hove Albion, who have been playing some impressive football of late. The Sragulls have won their last two league outings and should make it three in a row on Saturday. The Hard Tackle predicts a 2-0 win for Fabian Hurzeler and his men.