da dobrowin： The international break came at a particularly bad time for Wolverhampton Wanderers. Having lost 2-1 away at Sheffield United three weeks ago, the Midlands club earned a huge victory over an in-form Tottenham Hotspur prior to the break in matches.
da apostaganha： Two stoppage-time goals from Pablo Sarabia and Mario Lemina made a bandaged Spurs sorry as Gary O’Neil’s side moved up to the 12th in the Premier League table.
Wolves will certainly have been desperate to play again and prove to the supporters that they can win consecutive games in the league for the first time this season. A trip to Craven Cottage offers O’Neil’s men the ideal chance to do just that.
Nevertheless, the Wolves manager will be forced to make at least one change this weekend as a result of a suspension for Craig Dawson. Here is the predicted lineup for their Monday night bout against a free-falling Fulham.
1 GK – Jose Sa
While Jose Sa hasn’t hit the heights from his debut season at Molineux two campaigns ago, the Portuguese shot-stopper has still proven himself to be one of the best goalkeepers in England’s top flight, boasting the eighth-highest save percentage in the league with 71.7%.
Having started every game this term for Wolves, there’s very little chance O’Neil will give the nod to anyone other than Sa.
2 RWB – Nelson Semedo
Nelson Semedo has been solid for Wolves this season and his performance last time out was no exception. The Portugal international made four ball recoveries, one clearance and won 83% of his defensive duels before being replaced by Matt Doherty in the 67th minute.
Doherty struggled to impress, picking up a yellow card and a Sofascore rating of 6.5 to Semedo’s 7.2. The latter’s spot in the lineup won’t be at risk anytime soon.
3 RCB – Max Kilman
Like the man between the sticks, skipper Max Kilman has featured in every single game for Wolves this season and has become the main man at the back at Molineux ever since former captain Conor Coady left the club two seasons ago.
The 26-year-old is in the top 4% of central defenders across Europe’s top five leagues this term for blocks per 90 and made four clearances against Spurs as the hosts clinched a late win. There’s no reason that Kilman doesn’t start at Craven Cottage.
4 CB – Santiago Bueno
The biggest change O’Neil has to make is who to start ahead of the suspended Dawson. While there is a possibility that Wolves change to a back four shape, moving Toti in alongside Kilman, the head coach hinted in his pre-match press conference that Wolves would stick with the back five.
The ex-Bournemouth boss also admitted that Santiago Bueno is the most like-for-like replacement for Dawson and the centre-half, described as “perfect” by Wolves’ sporting director Matt Hobbs, could be about to make his first start for the club.
On the defence, O'Neil stated: "Santi [Bueno] has been here for some time now, I'm not sure how long but probably 10 weeks or so. He's working extremely hard all the time to make himself a good option for us at the start of games. The most like-for-like [replacement] would be Santi."
5 LCB – Toti Gomes
Toti Gomes offers O’Neil tactical flexibility as he can play at both left-back and centre-back. Against Spurs a fortnight ago, the Portuguese defender was used on the left of a back three and will likely keep his position, having earned a 7.3 match rating from Sofascore.
Regardless of Wolves’ shape on Monday, O’Neil will find a spot for the 24-year-old.
6 LWB – Rayan Ait Nouri
No player created more opportunities at Molineux two weeks ago than Rayan Ait Nouri as the Algerian put in a Man of the Match contending display, making six final third entries, according to FotMob.
While Hugo Bueno and Jonny Otto will be desperate to start against the London outfit, it would be a tragedy to drop Ait Nouri now.
7 DM – Mario Lemina
Mario Lemina grabbed himself the Man of the Match award versus Spurs last time out and certainly earned another run-out in the team, having clinched the winning goal in the game’s final embers.
This term, the Gabon international has earned a 7.02 rating via Sofascore and has become the fulcrum of this Wolves team.
8 RCM – Joao Gomes
Signed for £15m back in January, Joao Gomes has built a nice partnership in the middle of the park with Lemina. Against Tottenham, he registered one big chance and ended the game with a 92% passing accuracy, as per FotMob.
O’Neil won’t want to upset the apple cart by leaving either Gomes or Lemina out of the team.
9 LCM – Jean-Ricner Bellegarde
Jean-Ricner Bellegarde was a relatively unknown entity upon arriving from Strasbourg in the summer. However, now the 25-year-old is becoming a key player for O’Neil.
The decision was tough to either select Bellegarde or throw Pablo Sarabia into the fray after the latter scored a goal and bagged an assist last time out, but it’s unlikely that the manager will want to change a winning team, particularly against a side lower in the table than Wolves.
10 ST – Matheus Cunha
Matheus Cunha created three chances against Spurs prior to the international break and even assisted Sarabia’s equalising goal with a sumptuous ball over the top of the Lilywhites’ patched-up defence.
The Brazilian attacker is not a prolific goalscorer, as proven by his two goals this term, but his ability to create opportunities on the pitch won’t be overlooked by O’Neil en route to Craven Cottage.