Will this fixture really be ‘that’ easy, or do Wolves have a trick up their sleeve?

Arsenal returned to winning ways, on Wednesday, with a win over Club Brugge. Three goals and a clean sheet is exactly what the Gunners needed to shake off the lagging form. However, the Premier League is where they need to start picking up wins again. Two wins, a draw and a loss complete our form since the return from internationals. For Mikel Arteta, there couldn’t be a better game to get your team back on track than Wolves. So, let’s take a look at Wolves and what they could offer.

Wolves Woes

Wolves have recently switched managers. They’ve hired Rob Edwards, the former Luton Town manager. Since his arrival, Wolves have continued in the same vein, losing every single game. They’ve now lost 13 games out of 15 and sit with the joint lowest tally in Premier League history. It’s bleak for the side that reside in the West Midlands. They haven’t even cracked double digits for goals scored and have conceded the most goals out of any Premier League side. Wolves don’t even have a clear top scorer in the ranks as it remains just eight goals scored by eight different players. But, things are on the up as they managed to score for the first time, since the end of October, against Manchester United. They ended up losing 4-1, but a goal scored is heading in the right direction. When you look at some underlying statistics, they’ve actually been a little unlucky. According to the xG table, Wolves should be sitting in 17th with a huge 13 point swing in their favour. The use of xG has its cons, but it suggests that they’re creating some good chances and their opponents are scoring from low xG shots. It’s not much to go on, but it’s something.

Wolves System

Rob Edwards will almost certainly deploy a 5-2-3-1, but it’ll be disguised as a 3-5-2. They will sit in deep, with that back 5, and keep two central midfielders in front of the them to stop central progression. They will look to counter quickly and push their full backs up whenever they get a chance. Arsenal won’t mind a bit of resistance as they know it can draw their low block out. Recent news for Wolves will be a blow for them as Jean-Ricner Bellegarde has been ruled out for 6-8 weeks, he was certainly Wolves’ best player against United. However, they will welcome the return of Joao Gomes from suspension who will help bolster the midfield. In terms of style of play, it’s hard to pin down what it is. They don’t play with an identity or cohesion. It could end up being one of those games that it just all clicks into place and they find a method of moving forward.

Who To Watch For Wolves

Being honest, they don’t really have a standout player to watch out for. Joao Gomes is a talented midfielder, but is hampered by his colleagues. Vladislav Krejci is another that Wolves fans hold in a positive light. Jorgen Strand Larsen showed early promise at Wolves, but that has certainly faded.

One to watch: Fer Lopez

For me, one player that could bring something different to the Wolves side is Fer Lopez. He doesn’t get much of a look in for his outfit, but still turns out for the Spanish U21 national team. There’s certainly a good player in there and he’s been criminally underused. A traditional, ball playing, attacking midfielder that thrives on possession based football. This is maybe why he doesn’t suit the Wolves style of play, but he’s someone that can randomly create a high level chance from nothing. If he plays, he’ll be one to watch.

Summary

Realistically, Arsenal should be putting quite a few goals past Wolves. Given that Manchester United created over 4 xG against them and scored four goals, we should be looking to surpass that. Injuries are rife for us, but our defence should be steady enough to handle a blunt Wolves attack. When a game is billed to only have one winner, it tends to generate an upset. Complacency will be Arsenal’s biggest issue, they need to remain professional and treat Wolves like they’re the best team in the world. If they can go a few goals up then they can ease on the breaks. This is a banana skin that the Gunners need to avoid, if they don’t win this game then the mental fortitude of this side will disappear. But, this Arsenal side held Manchester City to a draw, beat Bayern Munich, Spurs, Atletico Madrid and many more on home turf. If we can’t turn over this Wolves side, after beating a team like Bayern Munich, then we don’t deserve anything from this campaign.

Predicted Lineup

I tagged this in my last post, but injury news won’t change this side much. Arteta was coy on Declan Rice’s availability, but I don’t think the Englishman will miss this game through illness. If Jurrien Timber really can’t make it then Christian Norgaard will have to slot in there again. Our defence won’t be any weaker than it is now, but our attack is nearly complete and that’ll be more than enough to dispatch this Wolves side. Let’s get the result!