ENGLAND: Premier League
Date: 01-11-21
Time: 9:00 PM
Venue: Molineux Stadium (Wolverhampton)
Although Wolves have an indifferent record on paper in the Premier League (PL) this season (W4, D1, L4), there’s been a noticeable upturn in their form in recent weeks. In fact, since the start of September, only Chelsea and Arsenal have picked up more league wins than Bruno Lage’s men (four).
That should give them a timely confidence boost ahead of welcoming Everton, a side who’ve coped competently in the majority of their recent trips to Molineux Stadium. In fact, the hosts have won just one of the last six home PL H2Hs (D3, L2). The last of the meetings within that run saw both teams score before half-time, though the two first-half goals Wolves have scored this season is a joint-league low.
The visitors should be alarmed by Wolves’ tendency to be more dangerous the later the game progresses, particularly given their own frailties in the latter periods. They were hit for four goals in the final 15 minutes of their remarkable 5-2 defeat to Watford last week, meaning that only Norwich City have now conceded more strikes after the 60th minute than Everton (nine) this season.
Now staring down the barrel of a third straight PL loss for the first time in nearly 12 months, it’s no surprise that the ‘Toffees’ start this game as outsiders, and with just one win from five as underdogs this season (D2, L2), the pressure is on manager Rafael Benítez to buck this unwanted growing trend.
Players to watch: New Wolves signing Hwang Hee-Chan has four goals in his last six league matches and is yet to be on the losing side in any PL goalscoring appearance (W2, D1). For Everton, Demarai Gray netted in his last appearance against Wolves (January 2019) and has been directly involved in five league goals (G:3, A2) this season.
Recent Stats:
- Wolves’s form in last 5 matches: DWWWD.
- Everton’s form in last 5 matches: LLDWD.
PREDICTION: Home/Away