This ought to be as close to a foregone conclusion as you can get in this league but with City breathing down our necks, we really can’t afford to take anything for granted.
That said, Wolves are truly terrible. I am a little surprised that they’ve been as bad as they’ve been. I think most expected them to be somewhere near the bottom but with just two points accrued in 15 games, they remain on course to become the worst side in the Premier League era. They need nine points from their remaining 23 games to equal Derby County’s record low of 11 points in 2007/08. In the past we’ve seen some sides threaten to take Derby’s unwanted crown only to muster up enough mediocrity to scrape beyond the extremely low bar set by the Rams, but I’m not sure we’ve seen anything quite as bad as this Wolves side.
Our opponents began the season with Vitor Perreira at the helm after he was able to steer Wolves away from relegation after a poor start last season. However, after this year’s horrific start, his position was deemed untenable and he was replaced by Rob Edwards. It was a curious decision at least on Edwards’ part given his Middlesborough side were, and still are, looking very good for automatic promotion whilst he was walking into a dressing room which bar a sporting miracle are already consigned to relegation. I’m sure the money was a factor.
Ownership issues has no doubt played a major part in Wolves’ sharp decline following a period of success. They probably did overspend to get back to the Premier League in the first place, given they managed to convince Ruben Neves, who had already captained Porto in the Champions League, to play second tier football amongst other big purchases. Initially it seemed to have paid off. Wolves finished seventh in their first season back in the top tier, playing some exceptional football with a strong team including the likes of Neves, Raul Jiminez and the late Diogo Jota. This qualified them for the Europa League, a huge achievement for a newly promoted side. They made it through numerous qualifying rounds all the way to the last eight before narrowly losing to eventual winners Sevilla.
They also repeated a top-seven finish that season but were denied a European spot by ourselves after we finished eighth, outside the European spots, but our FA Cup triumph meant we took Wolves’ place in the Europa League. This was of course before the introduction of the Conference League.
But since those lofty days, Wolves have steadily declined, continuously selling star players to meet PSR requirements. This past summer they lost Cunha and Ait-Nouri to the two Manchester clubs and that appears to have been the straw which broke the camel’s back as far as their Premier League status is concerned. Many Wolves fans are asking their owners why this money from sales has not been going into building the squad and building on those early seasons competing in the top third of the table. As a means of protest against their owners, many Wolves fans boycotted the first 15 minutes of their home game against Man United, and it made for a hugely toxic atmosphere inside Molinuex which no doubt contributed to their mostly spineless 4-1 defeat. Their fans will undoubtedly be dreading their visit to N5 on Saturday night.
And they have good reason to. Even putting their general crapness aside for a moment, they have lost all of their last eight meetings with Arsenal, our longest current winning run against a Premier League side. They also have the league’s most porous defence against the second most potent attack. Even with our injury issues we should be getting a few goals here.
In terms of team news, Arteta was typically giving nothing away in his press conference earlier. He was very coy regarding the fitness of Saliba, Rice, Timber and Trossard. Given we have a rare clear midweek following this game, maybe he will risk one or two of them. I wouldn’t bank on it though.
I think we will see a similar side to the one that lined up in Brugge. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Nørgaard line up at centre back again alongside Piero Hincapié. Calafiori is suspended so MLS will get his first league start of the season. As for the midfield Rice is battling with a runny nose so it’s anyone’s guess as to his involvement on Saturday. I wouldn’t be against giving him another rest and giving Merino a go alongside Zubimendi and Ødegaard. In attack Saka will come in for Madueke despite the latter’s excellent brace in Belgium. I would stick with Martinelli on the left after his own exceptional strike in Brugge whilst Gyökeres will get another go mostly due to Jesus’ lack of fitness.
It’s a rare Saturday night KO so if you will be in attendance, you must be in the pub no later than 11am otherwise Arteta’s henchmen will not permit you to enter the stadium. A minimum of nine pints must be consumed prior to arrival to the ground, and all fans will be breathalysed upon entry including children over the age of 36 months. You have been warned.
Given the disparity of quality between ourselves and our hapless opponents, I am going for a nice and relaxing 4-0 thumping. COYG!
Nice preview, 21 CG. Having had an ex-City boys Christmas lunch last Friday followed by the annual boys night out on Tuesday night, I might not be in a position to pass the entrance exam tomorrow. I’m confident it will be a win. The luxury of a week without a game awaits the players after tomorrow. I hope they enjoy it, maybe get a couple of days of sun on their backs and then come back refreshed for the next onslaught.
COYG
Characteristically upbeat preview, 21CG.
Remember the Law of Sod ! Just saying.
Excellent, 21CG. That brought a smile to my face. Rice probably starts if the Friar’s Balsam has kicked in, but the rest of the walking wounded should be given the maximum rest possible.
Games against teams when they are at the bottom of the league are relatively uncommon, roughly three every two seasons, and far more often than not at their gaff. At home, we tend to thrash teams when they are bottom of the league or scrape through by the odd goal, with nothing much in between. We haven’t lost one of these games at home in the Premier League era, and the last one that we didn’t win was the horrible 4-4 draw against the neighbours in October 2008 when we gave up a 4-2 lead in the 89th minute.
Cheers 21CG for a very informative & positive report. Even though we are unsure which xi will take the field ( Arteta being informative as normal ) they should be way too good for the opposition. Very rare for an EPL game to be a walk in the park but surely this one will break that trend.
3 points & lots of goals should make it a good evening for us.
COYRRR
9 pints and a 4 goal win! I like the sound of that!
Thanks 21CG for an enjoyable, optimistic preview. And before that, thanks CER for an excellent summary of the Brugge game.
I am sure the team will approach the match with as much seriousness as against any other team, and without an iota of complacency. Given the week long break before the next match if we can manage to get this one done without requiring to risk any of those who are recovering that would all the better.
I haven’t seen Wolves play this season except for the odd bit of highlights. Even if their performances have really been deserving of their results, they may find all the more reasons to start fighting back right about now. I expect a committed defensive team that we won’t find too easy to break and would need to be patient. I almost always expect that from unfancied teams visiting us.
My prediction for the starting line-up:
Raya
White-Nørgaard-Hincapié-MLS
Zubimendi
Ødegaard-Eze
Saka-Gyökeres-Martinelli
A late flurry of a few goals for a 3-0 home win will be fine!
Come on Arsenal!
I’d love a very high scoring first half followed by rotation to the max in the second. However, I’ll be content (not happy) with a 1-0 home win. May well meet the entrance criteria as my night time kick off will be seven hours ahead of yours 21CG. Lots of time for a few sherbets. Hic.
Thanks 21CG, it’s another 5AM kick off for me and I am getting a bit old for all-night drinking but I suppose if MA insists then I will have to try.
No idea who will play which makes it a bit tricky choosing my three Arsenal players for the HolicsRopeyLeague but I think MLS will play so I went with him, Saka and Raya.
Though I much appreciated his turn in Brugge I don’t want to see Norgaard as a CB in the PL so I hope Timber can make it.
Nice one, 21CG – hoping for a goal feast tonight. I’ll be there in the North Bank tonight thanks to a very kind gesture from C100 🙏🏻🙏🏻
You are very welcome Trev. Enjoy the game!
Talk of easy wins always make me anxious . Wolves will come with a low block and try to frustrate us and sometimes you get anxious at home . But this is the sort of game Gyokeres should relish and we will hopefully see him at his best . Let’s put pressure on the plastic Mancs who have a tough task tomorrow. 3-0 to the Gunners!
Enjoy your evening Trev!
We have lots more options this season though, so games like this should not bother us. I hope we get the opportunity to rest a few and do early subs with a comfortable lead. Its about time we had some luck with injuries. Hopefully Arsenal 5 Wolverhampton 0.
Team news!
Cheers 21CG! Top preview as ever.
Big Willy returns! Makes me feel a bit better, I can tell you. I’ll be watching the game at a Minneapolis water hole so I am about to go across the mighty Mississip. COYG
I’m gonna start saying Hincapie needs a rest soon. His signing has been an absolute revaluation.
Does that mean Gabriel, Dowman and Havertz are our only first team injuries..before the game?
SP @18
And Mosquera
But now BennyBlanco is crocked
Giving me a heart attack .but three points
Never in doubt. At least not from the 98th minute on.
Streaky
OG came thorough for us and it’s a much nicer 2-1 than last week
A tough watch. Wolves were better than I anticipated and we made things harder for ourselves than I expected. Three points, home win, top of the League in England and Europe. Kai Havertz is back soon. Things could be worse.
If Ben White needs a hamstring op, do we need to buy a right back in the window or will we soldier on with Timber until Mosquera returns?
BtM@25: Gnarly Marli may have to do an MLS and step into the breach.
Watching that game was as much fun as having your genitals nailed to a tree. The players look utterly spent.
CER @27, that is a very apt sounding analogy but I’ll have to take your word for it.
And while I while the pre-flight hours away, I refer you to my observation @2. I don’t claim any Mystic Meg visionary powers but it seemed to me that too many chickens were being counted (not so much in here) before this match and we should be long enough in the tooth by now to recognise a banana skin when we approach one. A team fighting for its PL survival isn’t going to lie down for an exhausted group with a patched up defence. Lessons need learning.
@27 CER Is that an Italian thing? Sounds like you’ve had personal experience. Are your feet on the ground or is suspension mandatory?
@26 Ned more of a leap like a young Salmon than a step into the breach I think? All kinds of potential here for those of a Spey casting disposition.
CER @27 I had heard that they get up to strange things in Winchmore Hill
BtM@30, C100@31 – well, I have to fill my days somehow…
Sounds tricky but I suppose you get the hang of it after a while.
Wish Palace had shown a bit more balls in front of goal. After
missing several good chances they’ve given Haaland a free header.
That definitely fell into the category of games against a team bottom of the league that we scrape through by the odd goal.
The first substantive snows of the season have arrived at Castle Ned, making any outside nailing activity impossible, thankfully.
Only the battered spuds to provide some cheer then
We are in a title battle . C130y and Villa both have real momentum and Chelsea could be contenders too. We have to recover our energy before the Christmas programme . Hopefully Havertz will be back soon and Gabriel Jesus is getting match fitness . When you see how effective Haaland is , the comparison to Gyokeres is almost laughable but with Merino as well we do have striking resources
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